"BATTLE AT THE GATE"
(PROM OCR OWM COBRISPONDENT.) SYDNEY, 27th November. What is picturesquely referred to as the "Battle at the Gate" still goes on, and victory, thus far, ia with the defenders. It is a remarkable thing that the dreaded disease has been raging, for some weeks, almost in the heart of the city, and that it is still confined there. Five hundred cases have been treated in the Quarantine Station, and 24 persons have died there, and still it has not "broken quarantine."
It will be almost a miracle if the epidemic is kept out, and the authorities recognise this, and have made their dispositions accordingly. Their plans are ready, and with the first announcement of a case outside the station, the machinery they have built up will come automatically into operation. Schools, picture shows, theatres—every kind of a public gathering that can be done without—will be closed, buildings in all suitable localities will be taken as hospitals, the isolation of all patients and contacts will be undertaken promptly and thoroughly. Two main preventive measures will be adopted—vaccination and respirators. Public vaccination depots are being opened in the city this afternoon, and respirators will be on sal© in a day or two .A representative board has been appointed to control all antiepidemic activities in the event of an outbreak occurring All these measures so far are merely precautionary —but, at any rate, Australia has been warned, and will not be caught unprepared, as was the case in unfortunate New Zealand
The majority of tho cases at the Quarantine Station have been provided by two vessels—the Atua, from Auckland via the Islands, and the troopship Medic, which had left for Europe with some hundreds of soldiers, and was ordered back to port after the signing of the armistice. The virulence of the> Atua outbreak is said to be due to its liaying been first contracted by the Mjian crew, who naturally passed it on. to the white men in a far worse form.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19181209.2.73
Bibliographic details
Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 139, 9 December 1918, Page 7
Word Count
334"BATTLE AT THE GATE" Evening Post, Volume XCVI, Issue 139, 9 December 1918, Page 7
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Evening Post. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.