The Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918-1919 was the subject of a recent morning lecture by Mario Saliba at Il-Ħaġar cultural centre in Victoria.

He introduced the subject and went on to explain his research, adding that he expected to find more material about the topic.

Saliba gave details about the medical situation, showing photos of doctors serving in Gozo during those years. He explained the reason behind the pandemic’s name, even though the Iberian country was not really its centre or initiator.

The global figures he displayed showed that the number of deaths caused by the Spanish Flu – 40 million – exceeded the Great War casualties.

Saliba went on to describe the effects of the flu on Gozo, which was less affected than Malta. Still, there were major disruptions in various spheres such as schools, work, religion and social life. In Gozo, over 2,500 cases were reported.

The first cases were reported on September 17, 1918, though it could be that symptoms were not immediately identified, and the last case on June 11, 1919. Saliba calculated that the infection rate was of over 11 per cent of Gozo’s population.

People were ordered to remain quarantined at home until the symptoms subsided, while sanitary inspectors were ordered to check that the sick stayed home.

An interesting aspect was that for a period of some six months, in order to reduce tension, Gozo Bishop Giovanni Maria Camilleri ordered churches to suspend the usual pealing of bells to announce a death.

Saliba said he found useful the notes recorded by Nadur archpriest Martin Camilleri, the only parish priest who considered these exceptional details important enough to record.

In fact, Fr Camilleri was among those struck by the flu. A reference was also made to the more prominent names of those who caught the virus, including doctors and other professionals, priests and seminarians.