Spanish Flu
The Spanish Flu pandemic began in 1918 in Europe, and it was unlike anything medical professionals had seen before. It was strange in the fact that it was striking down people one wouldn't expect, for instance, the young and otherwise healthy. A sub-group of the young and healthy would be the young servicemen returning from duty at the end of World War I. It is speculated that more soldiers were killed by the Spanish Flu than by World War I, but there isn't an exact number for the casualties from the Spanish Flu. Hospitals were understaffed due to the war efforts and were struggling to keep up. Places like Larkmoore and Slatefall had to work twice as hard due to the influx of patients.
Larkmoore staff did everything they could to keep the patients' morale up. Kept them as well-stocked as possible, but when supplies ran low, instilled in them that they would make do with whatever they had and would certainly overcome any obstacle. It may have been naive, but they knew that their best chance was to keep everyone moving forward together.
Slatefall, on the other hand, had very disjointed leadership and rather dubious methods of attaining supplies. When the hospital became inundated with flu patients, they were ill-equipped and it showed. They lacked the fortitude to keep going through the crisis and everyone suffered for it.
In the end, around 675,000 Americans died from the Spanish Flu, and anywhere from 20 to 50 million people died from the disease worldwide. It came out of nowhere and disappeared almost as suddenly. A horrible addendum to a World Conflict. Many people of all walks of life suffered from the disease, and many died from it. It was a dark chapter in Blackwell's history, one of many I'm afraid to say.
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