richardding1
Mar 21, 2023
2/10
The title should have been:1918: The American Flu
Although the origin of the 1918 flu is still divided, pundits generally believe that it originated in the United States, because the first recorded case occurred in Fort Reary Barracks in Kansas, in March 1918, and more than 500 American soldiers fell ill within a few days.
The United States had entered the war by this time, and the epidemic was brought to France by American servicemen, and soon spread among the densely deployed troops. Military personnel of various countries, especially the British army, which had colonies around the world, spread infectious diseases around the world.
When the outbreak of infectious diseases began in March 1918, all the participating countries did not report them because of press restrictions, and the epidemic caused panic among the people, which was not conducive to supporting the war, and was classified as negative news that could not be reported. As a result, the military and people of various countries were kept in the dark, greatly exacerbating the spread of the virus.
As a neutral country, Spain has no possibility of leaking secrets, and the military naturally has no reason to take strict press control measures, and the media tracks various social hot spots as usual. When an infectious flu-like epidemic appeared in Spain, it immediately attracted the attention of the Spanish media.