CAPE TOWN AND THE SPANISH FLU 1918
Cape Town had been no stranger to epidemics. In 1713 nearly 25
percent of Cape Town residents died from smallpox and another 2 000 died when
it broke out again 42 years later. In 1881 another 1 000 died from
smallpox. The bubonic plague claimed 395 victims in 1901.
The Spanish Influenza Epidemic of 1918, however, claimed a conservative
estimate 50 million lives worldwide, with India having the highest
number of recorded deaths at 17 million. South African deaths are
estimated to have been between 280 000 and 300 000 deaths. In Cape Town
the figure is approximately 6342 deaths while a further 116 378 non-fatal
cases were reported. The total population was only 199 570 which meant
that two out of every three residents in Cape Town were affected.
The strain of Flu was called “Spanish Flu, as the Spanish
newspapers were the first to report it. Spain was neutral in
World War 1 and there was no military censorship in this regard. They could
report how the Flu was killing both Allied and German troops in their trenches.
It is claimed that 43% of American troops that died in the War, died from the
Spanish Flu. There was no antidote for the Flu at the time.
The origin of the Flu is unknown but it was first observed
in Europe, America and areas of Asia. One unusual aspect of the flu
was that it struck down many previously healthy, young people.
According to author Catherine Arnold, Cape Town had a mild form of the
Spanish Flu in July 1918 which gave the population some sort of immunity
against the lethal strain which followed. This mild strain was later
found in Durban in early September 1918, resulting in one death.
The first case of the lethal strain of Spanish Flu in Cape Town was on
13th September 1918. It had broken out among the 1300 troops returning
from a one year active duty in France and Belgium. The troop ship
had stopped for coal in Free Town in Sierra Leone, where the Spanish Flu was
rampant. On arriving at Cape Town Harbour, the Infected soldiers
were placed in the military hospital where they infected the medical
staff. The remainder of the troops were sent to the military camp at
the Rosebank Showgrounds where the Baxter Theatre and the College of
Music now stand. The staff at the Military camp, the transport drivers, the
stevedores and fisherman at the harbour nearly all contracted the Spanish
Flu .
The first civilian death appears to be that of John Smith, a 20 year old
brush maker from District Six on 30th September. By
the 6th of October, 160 people were being buried each
day. By October 9, this had increased to 250 per day and by the 13th
the figure was 300 per day. After 4 weeks, 4% of Cape Town’s population
had died.
Unlike many other viruses, the majority of the victims were young men
and women, leaving behind almost 2000 children. Ellerslie High
School became a temporary hospital while the City hall became the center
for relief food and medicine. Canon Lavis ( later Bishop Lavis ) opened up St
Pauls in Bree Street for victims.
Death itself could come fast, often quicker than 12 hours. Charles
Lewis bordered a streetcar in Cape Town for a three hour journey. First
the conductor collapsed and died and soon after the driver and 6
passengers died. Charles walked home.
Every morning carts went through the streets of Cape Town, manned
by convicts, picking up the dead who had dropped dead on the streets and
ringing a bell calling people to bring out their dead. At the Maitland
cemetery a minister was on permanent duty while carts and wheelbarrows piled
with bodies, lined Voortrekker Road. Coffins were in short supply
and bodies were being buried in blankets in mass graves. When morgues were
filled to capacity, bodies were taken to Woodstock Beach and buried in
trenches. Some survivors later
developed a condition which caused them to go into a coma and appeared to
be dead. Of these many failed to recover totally and were unable to move.
Most shops and offices closed. Public transport and postal
services barely operated. Schools and places of public entertainment were
closed down and churches were requested not to hold services. Streets were
almost deserted during the day. According to the Cape Times, Cape Town
was like a City in mourning.
By the end of October the number of cases was rapidly decreasing and the
Town started to revive. On the 30th of October, theatres and
cinemas were opened after being fumigated . Over the following
months the authorities kept a close watch on ships entering Cape
Town harbour. Worldwide the pandemic was declared over only in 1928.
Cape Town had been experiencing a boom period which had led to
gross overcrowding. The Great War had also resulted in an influx of
military personnel which had worsened the overcrowding. It was commonly
conceded that the overcrowding and poor housing had been a major factor in the
spread of the epidemic.
As a result, two housing companies were established. Garden
Cities in 1919 and the Citizen’s Housing League a few years later.
A further outcome was that the City developed Maitland
Garden Village in 1921, Garden Cities developed Pinelands in 1922 and
Langa was established in 1925. After the second World War, the Citizens Housing
League (now known as Communicare) developed Thornton in
1947. At the time the Citizens Housing League lobbied for
improved housing legislation. A new Housing Act and an improved Public Health
Bill came before Parliament
Worldwide, a flu surveillance network was developed to deal with
flu pandemics. This network was able to reduce the impact of the
1957 Asian Flu, 1968 Hong Kong flu, 1991 Hong Kong Bird Flu and the 2004 Asian
Bird Flu. It is too early to tell if it has made an impact on the current
pandemic.
Article Courtesy:
Brian Watkyns 1987 updated 2020.
Brian Watkyns 1987 updated 2020.
Footnote : Klasie van Rensburg, living in Wolermaranstad had
predicted a number of events and was regarded as a sieneer (seer). He
accurately predicted that at the beginning of 1918, a
great plague would sweep the world and South Africa. But that’s a story for
another time……
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| Walking along the Elsies River Canal in Pinelands |
