Influenza Epidemic

INFLUENZA EPIDEMIC of 1918, the deadliest flu outbreak in recorded history, claimed an estimated 50 million lives worldwide, including 50,000 Canadians. Known as the Spanish flu, it appeared in the spring of 1918 and was spread by troops returning from WWI. It reached eastern Canada with the troopships in June and by early Oct the first cases were reported in VANCOUVER and VICTORIA. Vancouver, for instance, was a "closed" city from Oct 18 to Nov 19, meaning that there was a ban on all public gatherings and most businesses closed while people were urged to stay indoors. The MEDICAL PROFESSION was powerless to halt the disease and fought its spread mainly by quarantine and closure of public places. The flu was carried into the Interior along rail lines and up the coast on steamships, and it thrived in LOGGING and MINING camps. FIRST NATIONS communities were particularly hard hit; at least 1,150 aboriginal people died, a much higher death rate than in the non-aboriginal population. The epidemic ran its course early in 1919, having claimed about 4,000 lives in BC.