Pandemic Freak Out PART 1

As some of you may know, this weekend, my kids, husband and I were totally infected with the Flu, and all the glorious symptoms that go with that. Luckily grandma was there to save the kids while mom (me) was completely useless, reduced to the blubbering whining and moaning of a 4 year old, (oh yes, I wanted my mommy)
Something about fever, body aches, and the dreaded barf that really reduces a person to the state of just wanting to die. Well, I can joke about wanting to die, but in the United States VERY few actually die from the Flu these days, and even then mostly from complications. We know a little over the counter remedy will lessen symptoms, and we will ride out the Ick with fluids and TLC. This got me thinking, what would I do if I heard on the news today that there was an outbreak of a disease in the U.S., one that could really kill?
Called a pandemic, when an infections disease spreads through a wide population, across continents, or the world, it is not preventable and happens in cycles throughout history. Typhoid Fever, Cholera, Bubonic Plague, and Spanish Influenza are a few of the diseases that have devastated populations.

However, in other parts of the world, there are strains of illness not yet discovered, and in fact some that are discovered, but have not completely evolved into the kind that humans can contract or spread, one in particular is known as Avian Flu, or Bird Flu. There are in fact 3 strains of this type of influenza that you can read about in more detail HERE. The basis of the article is the spread to humans, there have only been a few cases, and they are isolated, however, this is something that is being closely monitored by the CDC and WHO.
We do live in modern times, with hand washing, modern medicine, and vaccinations, but we also have a large flaw in our culture as well, it is our special ability to think we are impervious to things happening in other parts of the world. Well, as vigilant individuals, we must ask ourselves, if this were to happen today, what actually would happen, and how can I prepare?

The first question, is answered by opening remarks given by Mike Leavitt, Sec. of Health and Human Services.

"That Great Pandemic also touched Nevada.In 1918, Nevada's statewide population was less than four percent of what it is today-just 77,000 people. Yet between mid-October and late November, the state reported several hundred cases of the Spanish flu, as well as scores of deaths from it.The exact numbers of Nevadans affected by the flu will never be known, because regular reports to the U.S. Public Health Service were never made.

Yet Nevadans reacted to the flu as those in so many other states did: City ordinances were passed that mandated the wearing of facemasks in public. All public gatherings were banned. In White Pine County (located in east-central Nevada), a countywide quarantine was enforced for over two and half months to help quell the spread of the pandemic.Nevada even considered establishing quarantine stations along the state's borders to secure it from the disease.However, these precautionary measures were not always popular.

In Elko County (located in north-east Nevada), a schoolteacher named Eleanor Holland complained to fellow teachers that mandatory mask wearing was a ridiculous burden.A short time later, she contracted the flu and nearly lost her life. She later recalled, "It didn't seem so funny when I came down with the flu and nearly died. Fortunately, none of the other teachers got it though they all helped take care of me."When it comes to pandemics, there is no rational basis to believe that the early years of the 21st century will be different than the past. This is not Stephen King. It happened in 1918, and if a pandemic strikes, it will come to Nevada."

Well, what do you think? What do you feel would happen in your city if there were an outbreak? How would people react? How would you react?

More to come...