SIGN OF THE TIMES

2020 has secured its place in history books as the year when COVID19 brought the world to a standstill. More than a year later, developments have been made in the fight against the virus but the question remains – are we any closer to completely ending the pandemic?

The fi rst cases of the disease were reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019. It has since spread rapidly around the world prompting the World Health Organization to declare COVID-19 a pandemic on March 2020. The world was thrust into lockdown –borders were closed, social gatherings were prohibited, and schools went online.

January 31 2020 – the first case of

The 1918 pandemic happened towards the end of WWI and its spread is mostly attributed to the movement of soldiers across the globe.

by Crystal Anne Villaruz & Theresa Mae Silva

COVID-19 was confirmed in the Philippines. The Philippine government, however, was complacent. Travel ban was only enforced for passengers from Wuhan, specifically. The following months would see the post-apocalyptic world painted in movies come to life: the streets eerily quiet with barely any cars on the road as people stayed home to avoid catching the virus. But while what we are experiencing right now is entirely new to us, it is reminiscent of something that took place more than a century ago – the 1918 influenza pandemic. More commonly known as the “Spanish Flu”, the virus infected 500 million people worldwide – 1/3 of the population at the time –and killed an estimated 50 million victims after its two-year run. It is considered to be the most severe pandemic in history with its casualties having outnumbered that of World War I and World War II combined.

In a blink of an eye, everything changed. It was the worst time of the year.

It occurred in three waves.

Countries from all over the world felt the heavy impact of this crisis but a few had seriously considered the contingency that the world economy might be shaken to its foundations by a communicable disease. Sadly, one of them is our country – the Philippines. In its whole 15 years, 2020 has been the year of suffering to many Filipinos; about 4.5 million Filipinos have lost their jobs due to implementations of measures that severely impact individuals’ personal and social lives, including closing institutions – and understandably, opportunities being halted.

It has since spread rapidly around the world promoting the World Health Organization to declare COVID-19 a pandemic on March 2020.

The fi rst wave was generally mild, the mortality low. The patients experienced typical flu symptoms such as chills, fever, and fatigue that usually disappeared after several days. People became hopeful as the reported cases started to dwindle. Unbeknownst to them, the second and what would later be found deadliest wave of the pandemic, was just around the corner. Highly potent, the new strain that emerged had the power to kill a perfectly healthy individual within hours of developing symptoms. The number of fatalities skyrocketed, leaving funeral parlors so overwhelmed that bodies began to pile up and many people had to dig the graves of their relatives themselves. The third wave of the flu was just as deadly as the second wave but the end of the war halted military movements across countries, thus, limiting the spread of the virus. thus, limiting the spread of the virus. By 1920, the remaining victims of the Spanish Flu had either died or developed immunity and the pandemic was considered ended. Despite its staggering impact, the 1918 flu pandemic would disappear into obscurity over the years, largely overshadowed by WWI. As COVID-19 continues its global march, there has been renewed interest in the “forgotten pandemic” as experts around the world try to gather whatever information they can to put an end to the current pandemic.

Daily average of mortality rates scaled gradually in the course of time. Thousands of businesses such as hotels, restaurants and shops were brought upon to closure. Aggregate employment remained below its pre-recession level. To put it simply, drawbacks from miscellaneous sectors were everywhere. But many of these are only a fraction of the entire repercussions of the socalled “COVID-19 crisis,” it suggests a much bigger picture to look into.

Countries from all over the world felt the heavy impact of this crisis but a few had seriously considered the contingency that the world economy might be shaken to its foundations by a communicable disease. Sadly, one of them is our country – the Philippines. In its whole 15 years, 2020 has been the year of suffering to many Filipinos; about 4.5 million Filipinos have lost their jobs due to implementations of measures that severely impact individuals’ personal and social lives, including closing institutions – and understandably, opportunities being halted.

The 1918 pandemic happened towards the end of WWI and its spread is mostly attributed to the movement of soldiers across the globe. It occurred in three waves. The fi rst wave was generally mild, the mortality low. The patients experienced typical flu symptoms such as chills, fever, and

By 1920, the remaining victims of the Spanish Flu had either died or developed immunity and the pandemic was considered ended. Despite its staggering impact, the 1918 flu pandemic would disappear into obscurity over the years, largely overshadowed by WWI. As COVID-19 continues its global march, there has been renewed interest in the “forgotten pandemic” as experts around the world try to gather whatever information they can to put an end to the current pandemic. Science has come a long way over the last century. Vaccines were not available until

Science has come a long way over the last century. Vaccines were not available until