Coronavirus update: Covid-19 global pandemic vs Spanish Flu - Dis na wetin Nigeria fit learn from di deadly 1918 - 1919 Influenza for Lagos

As di whole world dey battle with di coronavirus pandemic today, plenti pipo dey hala say dem neva see dis kain tin before but di truth be say pandemic like dis don worry di world before.

Make we look back to di ogbonge pandemic wey shake di world - di Spanish Flu, wey bin happun 100 years ago.

Di 1918 - 1919 influenza pandemic/Spanish Flu na di most serious pandemic for recent history. Na one H1N1 virus wit genes of avian origin cause am. Although no universal agreement ontop wia di virus from come.

Dem estimate say about 500 million pipo or one-third of di world pipo catch di virus.

Di number of deaths dey about 50 million worldwide, according to di Centre for Disease Control (CDC). But pipo dey argue about di number of death and e dey very hard to verify di actual number.

About 500,000 Nigerians, out of population of 18million during dat period, die for less than six months, and between 50 and 80% of di population na im di virus affect.

Di over-crowded city centers na dia worse pass, even though di pandemic reduce as fast as e start. Panic, death and sickness affect di productive capacity of di kontri.

Di fact say dem call di pandemic Spanish flu no mean say e come from Spain. Di name gum di disease because di Spanish newspapers na di first to report di outbreak.

Di Influenza officially enta Lagos on 14 September 1918 (according to di Public Record Office, London) Dem confam di first case for Lagos on 14 September. Dr Gray, one medical officer during di colonial goment, discover say three crew men from di SS Panayiotis (ship) dey very sick ontop Iddo wharf.

Dem remove dis three crew men go di infectious disease hospital for Ikoyi afta dem diagnose say dem get di disease.

Sanitary authorities arrest di ship and disinfect am, Dem later send di ship go di pool-dat na di quarantine area for ships wey dem don disinfect.

Di rate of di spread and infection inside Lagos come dey increase more-more. Di spread for Lagos dey fast and bad well-well sotey for di first two months di number of death dey high- Lagos loss 1.5% of im 81,941 population.

By half of September, all di merchant ships wey pack for Lagos don dey infected. In fact one of dis ships cause di wide spread of di influenza for Lagos.

Report say one of di ship, SS Bida na "di ogbonge means wey di influenza take enta Nigeria" (Public Record Office, London, 1919).

Di SS Bida leave Gold Coast and land for Lagos on 14 Sept with 239 passengers. Lagos sanitary control no do dia work wella, dem leave all passengers to go without thorough examination. All dis passengers come disappear and mix up with di local pipo.

Even di Acting Govnor confam for one memo to di British Secretary of State, di carelessness of di sanitary officer wey dey in charge of di sea port for Lagos. Dem later record more cases of infected passengers inside di SS Bida more than any oda ship wey pack for Lagos dat time.

Report of some Pipo wey sick and dey linked to di ship

One first class customs clerk waka go see medical officer on 18th September, e later come begin sick on di 22nd, dem come send am go di Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) on di for 23rd as case of influenza and im come die di same day.

Dem find out say one woman dey sick for di man house on di 15th and she be passenger inside di S.S. "Bida". She use train take comot from house on di 23rd, and dem remove am go IDH.

On di 23rd, dem find one unconscious African sailor from di S.S "Bida" for street and dem no fit find im address for Lagos.

On di 24th, dem declare say one Customs Clark, wey dey live for di same compound as anoda goment clerk and one girl, wey come from Gold Coast get contact with di S.S "Bida" but dem later say na lie.

On di 25th, report of oda cases like di cook of one goment official wey dey live for one compound wia passengers from S.S. "Bida" don bin visit. Plus also one Customs Clark, wey dey work for di same office with di case of 18th September, im sister and son on di 26th. Many more case dey.

Di colonial goment struggle to control di infection. From 14 September,18' wen dem first confam di infection for di city, dem report cases of infection everiday from ships wey dey come from neighbouring kontries.

Di rate of di spread and di fast way e take kill pipo surprise di world. Pipo from different class na im di influenza affect.

Within di first hours of di outbreak, di medical facilities for di colonial hospital and di infectious disease hospital don work pass as dem suppose work. Sick pipo full ground for di street, while those wey wan rescue dem also fall sick.

For di first two months of di outbreak, di number of death plenti well-well. 2,806 natives and 116 Europeans and non-natives na im dey infected. 243 natives later die, plus seven non-natives for cases wey dem refer from Lagos port alone. Lagos lost 1.5% of dia population of 81,941 for 1918.

Dem declare di Influenza as infectious disease through public notice. Dis legal recognition of di pandemic give di colonial state di power to enter pipo private houses by forceful; Dis kain tin neva happun for Lagos before.

Some Lagosians no agree for dis visits; Dem believe say authorities no dey respect dia privacy. Dis come cause big social and economic palava as pipo begin to dey run out from Lagos, and as dem dey run, di disease dey spread more-more, while those wey no fit run hide dia sickness from di authorities.

To change di mind set of di pipo, di goment come agree to make di indigenes do di house-to-house visits. Dem come dey do di waka wit di sanitary authority.

Still yet, pipo for Lagos, out of fear, run from di town to oda part of Nigeria territory. Since e be say train na di major means for transportation back then, e no tey di virus don spread reach Abeokuta, Oyo, Owerri, Onitsha, Nupe, Kantagora, Muri, Nasarawa, Warri, Ogoja, Calabar, Ibadan, Illorin, Bida, Jebba, Zaria, Kano, Bauchi, Bornu and Yola.

For October 7, 1918 dem do general meeting for Lagos wia Dr Foy, Senior Sanitary Officer, Dr Beringer and Dr Obassa, one native medical practitioner, address di pipo on top di need to allow di house-to-house visits.

Di goment meet Mr Kitoyi Ajasa to use im newspaper to publish di scheme.

Dem begin spray Ships and houses with sulphur fumigation and with solution of di cyllin disinfectant. Medical and sanitary department later stop di sprayin because of shortage of di disinfectant and shortage of labor.

Pipo come begin dey joke wit wetin dey happun, dem come begin say; see money, see death, di white man dey call you to come collect and take.

By mid-1919 di pandemic end, as those wey bin don get am die or develop immunity against di virus. No vaccines for di disease or scientifically accepted treatment plan. During dat time, medicine still dey local but di colonial goment and health authorities follow di practice of self-isolation and restriction of movement as way to stop di spread.

Since 1918, di world don experience three additional pandemics, for 1957, 1968, 2009 and most recently for 2019/2020.

Di 1957 H2N2 pandemic and di 1968 H3N2 pandemic each result to di death of 1 million pipo for di world, while di 2009 H1N1 pandemic result to fewer than 0.3 million deaths for im first year.

E go good make pipo know say during di 1918 pandemic, di colonial masters close churches, mosques, markets to stop di spread of influenza and dis action dey similar to wetin goment dey do now for 2020.

Fast forward to 100 years later, BBC Pidgin find out say everitin wey bin happun for history don dey repeat e self. From quarantine order, deep cleaning and disinfection of public places to di many cases of coronavirus inside Lagos, wey still be Nigeria bizness capital today, some pipo still dey even make joke about di mata.

For dis present day e get pipo wey dey tink say dis Covid-19 na big man palava but na lie, e go affect evribodi.

Currently, no drugs dey wey fit cha cha prevent Covid-19, and even sef no vaccine. As di virus don waka across di world touch pass one million pipo, scientists dey work at breakneck speed to identify ways to slow or stop di disease.

On 13 April, 2020 wen Nigeria presido Muhammadu Buhari announce say e don extend di earlier 14 days lockdown for Lagos and two oda towns by anoda 14 days sake of di Covid-19 pandemic, di presido draw ear give kontri pipo say dis coronavirus wey di kontri dey deal wit no be joke.

Watch President Buhari special broadcast to Nigerians here:

Between late February 2020 wen Nigeria announce di first case of Covid-19 for Lagos and mid April 2020, more than 340 pipo don catch di new coronavirus. And at least 10 pipo don die wit more than 90 discharge from hospital.

Source(Wia di informate from come): BBC Pidgin tori pipo Daniel Semeniworima and Princess Igho Williams poke plenti BBC library materials plus research papers like di Managing Epidemic: The British Approach to 1918-1919 Influenza in Lagos. By Jimoh Mufutau Oluwasegun, to bring una dis tori.