See history repeat itself with images of the Spanish flu and COVID-19 outbreaks
More than a century after the 1918 Spanish flu, its lessons are still saving lives. Mitigation methods such as face masks and social distancing may seem like foreign practices in the United States, but they would have felt familiar to those battling that earlier pandemic, which killed an estimated 675,000 Americans, already shell-shocked from World War I. Globally, the disease claimed some 50 million people.
This coronavirus may be novel, but eerily similar photographs from both pandemics reveal an undeniable sense of déjà flu.
ARRESTING THE VIRUS: (Above) Not all who wear masks are outlaws. Police officers in 1918 Seattle took the same precautions as New York cops in 2020.
DIALED IN
The telephone was advertised as a way to combat isolation under quarantine in 1918, but roughly two-thirds of America didn’t have one at the time and many operators were out sick with influenza. Today, landlines, mobile phones, video conferencing and social media keep us connected.
ON TRACK
Whether boarding a streetcar in Seattle or a Manhattan subway, a face mask was—and is—a requirement.
PRETTY HAIRY
In both 1918 Chicago and 2020 Atlanta, it’s impossible to get a close shave and maintain social distancing at the barbershop.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
The technology may have improved, but office workers in 1918 would have understood the basic precautions taken by the WFH set today.
A CLEAN START
Public health officials in 1918 preached the wisdom of hand washing. Today, first responders (like this Barcelona fire brigade member) ensure that water supplies are disinfected.
DISTANT REPLAY
A century later, sports remain a vital part of maintaining normalcy amid a pandemic—but a catcher’s mask still won’t protect you from a foul virus.
THE HANDS THAT FEED US
Food shortages and poverty have contributed to the devastation of both pandemics.
FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY
With hospitals overburdened in both pandemics, temporary facilities were constructed for patients in warehouses and convention centers.
CLEAN SWEEPS
Street cleaners in Lima, Peru, are better equipped today than their antecedents in 1918 New York City.
BREATHING LESSONS
Both pandemics required armies of workers to produce face masks. Or as the New York Board of Health warned in 1918, “Better to be ridiculous than dead.”
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