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Meeting of the State and City Health Departments
The Utah State and Salt Lake City Health Departments met to discuss precautions that could be taken to prevent the spread of Spanish Influenza (Salt Lake Tribune). At the time, there were only 8-10 confirmed cases, but the Health Department no doubt had seen the spread in other cities in the United States and knew the disease was fast-spreading and deadly. -
Spanish Influenza Spreads
With 63 new cases of Spanish Influenza and two more deaths, the Health Department considered forbidding funerals to prevent the spread. (Salt Lake Tribune) Doctors understood that the flu couldn't be passed from deceased bodies, but they surmised that family and friends who had been in contact with the patient could spread the disease to others attending the funeral. -
Salt Lake City is Shut Down
The Health Department "closes" Salt Lake City (no public meetings or gatherings) while 5-6 cases are reported in Iron County (Iron County Record). Just two days after considering closing funerals, the health department closes the whole city. -
Teachers Volunteer
With the schools closed and not enough nurses to attend to the sick, teachers were trained by the Red Cross as nurses in people's homes. (Salt Lake Tribune) It seems as though there were a lot of teachers happy to volunteer, but there was also pressure put on them to attend to the sick. Extra pay was offered in some school districts, although the teachers continued to receive their salaries while out of work. -
Epidemic
There is an estimated 20,000 cases of Spanish Influenza in Utah affecting 138 different cities. (Ogden Daily Standard) Salt Lake City seems to be the hardest hit, but the spread of the disease was state-wide. -
Portage, Utah
One day there were no cases of Spanish Influenza, and the next day 70 cases had developed overnight. The Health Department ordered placards on any home with an affected person (Ogden Daily Standard). With a 48 hour incubation period, an infected person could feel well enough to unknowningly infect many people. -
Public Meeting Bans Begin to Lift
Some towns in Utah begin to have no new reported cases of the Spanish Influenza, so some begin to lift their bans on public meetings. Other towns, however, continue to see fatalities (Salt Lake Tribune). I think it's interesting that the bans started to lift in November, yet the virus continued to spread well into December. -
Spread Continues
In Salt Lake City, 136 cases were reported along with five deaths (Salt Lake Tribune). Salt Lake City would ultimately have over 10,000 cases and 576 deaths. -
Bans Continue to Lift
Ogden City opens the movie theaters (Salt Lake Tribune). Each day, more towns resume normal every day life. -
Schools Set to Reopen
Salt Lake City School District announced that schools will re-open on December 30. There would be no New Year's break and students would attend an extra hour each day to make up for the time missed (Salt Lake Tribune). The epidemic wasn't over. On the same day they announced that the schools would reopen, there were 31 new cases reported and one death.
