EPIDEMIC COMMISSION.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 53, 3 March 1919, Page 2

EPIDEMIC COMMISSION.

PREVALENCE OF INFLUENZA. PRIOR TO OCTOBER. HARBOUR BOARD'S POWERS. The Epidemic Commission resumed its sitting at the Custom 6 Buildings this morning. Mr. George Davis, secretary of the ■ Drivers' Union, Auckland, who, with the members of the Commission, visited a number of localities where the working , classes reside, said the class of houses that had been seen by the committee were the worst that could be found in Auckland. There were no houses to I compare with them in the Ponsonby or Heme Bay districts. Dr. T. J. F. Hughes, recalled, put in further evidence regarding the prevalence of influenza in various districts prior to the arrival of the Niagara. There was no evidence, he said, that the ! spread of the disease wa« due to the ' passengers from the Niagara. Some of I the mailmen who went on board the : vessel did not contract the disease, while !in the case of those who became ill the I onset of the disease was not until several days after the arrival of the ship. EARLY PREVALENCE. There was no doubt that influenza was very prevalent in Auckland for ! some time before the arrival of the i Niagara, and that cases were quickly increasing, both in number and severity, I during September and the beginning of October. Many eases had occurred in Auckland similar to the cases on the ! Niagara, and cheat complications were j reported in a certain number of cases. Cold and wet weather always tended to J increase the severity of influenza at- : tacks, and to predispose to pneumonic complications. During October these wet and cold conditions existed in AuckI land, there being 8.08 inches of rain for ', the month. He was of the opinion that I the disease was in New Zealand before the arrival uf the Niagara, that the epidemic would have occurred apart from the Xiagaru. and that the ship's arrival probably aggravated the epidemic, although there was not direct evidence to prove this, apart from the cases of sickness, which occurrred among the Auckland Hospital nurses who were engaged in nursing patients from the Niagara. The influenza on the Niagara was not of the highly infectious type experienced in November. Replying to a question, he said instances had occurred where in the administration of his work his instructions to local authorities had only been carried out after considerable delay. On the other hand, he mentioned a case where the local authority had asked him to condemn four houses. After inspection, however, he decided that he could only condemn one of them. INSTRUCTIONS TO HARBOUR BOARD. Mr. H. D. Heather, chairman of the Auckland Harbour Board, said his Board received instructions from the Health Department with reference to the admission of overseas ships to the harbour. Up to the time of the epidemic the harbourmaster would bring the vessel into the harbour to await the visit of the medical officer. At times vessels were brought alongside before they were boarded. When Dr. Valintine arrived in Auckland, during the epidemic, the vessels were ordered to wait off North Head instead of in the stream. The Harbour Board received wireless information that influenza was on board, and the harbourmaster asked the Health Department a number of times whether he should allow the vessel to come alongside. When pho came in she was allowed to berth according to instructions from the Health Department It had been stated that the Harbour Board had power to remove the vessel, but this was not so. The Board had no power to remove the vessel except in such an event as the outbreak of fire. INSPECTION OF HOUSES. Mr. C. T. Haynes, chief sanitary inspector, gave further evidence regarding the inspection of houses. He mentioned an apartment house in regard to which evidence had been given by another witness. The house consisted of 15 rooms and five kitchenettes, and was occupied by ten adults and ten children. Reports from tho inspectors showed that the premises were kept clean and complied in every respect with the city by-laws. In order to obtain an estimate of the number of poorer cl.-iss of houses which mijrht be considered overcrowded, he had had an analysis made of 225 such houses. Taking into consideration the size of the rooms ami the number of occupants, ht> was of the opinion that overcrowding did occur in five per cent of these houses. He pointed out that the amoun.t of cubia nir snacp in some of the houses mentioned was not insufficient, according to the model by-laws of the English Local Oovernment Roard. and that no standard for this had been fixed in New Zealand.