Of diseases, bubonic plague and pandemic

We all know disease spreads. Whether it’s a bunch of itchy spots on your skin or a common cold, the microorganisms causing the disease find a way to inhabit something, including living things to spread the disease further. In this particular pandemic, the disease spread so fast that millions died to the point where humans nearly went extinct.

In the history of diseases in the world, the Bubonic Plague or Black Death is a disease that struck Europe and Asia in the mid-1300s. The disease hit China, India, Persia, Syria, and Egypt, then it spread in Europe, when twelve ships from the Black Sea with dead infected people arrived. Those who were alive inside the ship also spread the disease. The Bubonic Plague killed over 20 million people in Europe, almost one-third of its population.

In this time of the Covid-19 pandemic, and after watching an episode of “Mankind: The Story of All of Us” on the Bubonic Plague, or more commonly known as “the Black Death”, I realized that the lockdown and quarantine the government has ordered is for our own good. Back then, there was no quarantine or lockdown, so the plague spread very quickly. I suppose if those two very important things existed back then, maybe, just maybe, the kill count wouldn’t have been that bad. How amazing mankind’s remedies are!

It has made me realize all the more that hygiene is important, especially in times like these. Virus and bacteria like to breed in wet and filthy areas. I feel that during this Covid-19 outbreak, hygiene kits should be distributed, especially to those who can’t afford to buy them and those who live in unsanitized places. There should also be testing and investigation.

It also made me think of the social impact of this to the world.  One of the most saddening moments during the Bubonic Plague was the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. The citizens of Strasbourg blamed the Jews simply because of a rumor of them causing the plague. They should’ve conducted an investigation before pointing fingers. It didn’t help because 1,000 people died at that time and even more died once the Bubonic Plague hit that area. The massacre contributed to increasing the chance of extinction of mankind.

This topic prompts me to somehow use my knowledge in Science to help others and create new cures and vaccines to prevent something like this from happening again. I’m not sure if this is true or not, but I’ve seen an article on Facebook about the Bubonic Plague re-emerging in one of the provinces in China. Luckily, they managed to contain it and boy a miracle was it! It didn’t spread and lead us to near extinction this time!

I think the Black Death spread easier back then because there was a lack of communication. I bet if there was news and social media back then (minus the fake news, of course!), people would’ve been more alert and started taking precautions earlier, thus reducing the kill count.

In short, this is an important event in history that should be passed down from generation to generation, especially to budding doctors and politicians, so history won’t repeat itself. Along with the knowledge and technology we have gathered throughout the years, maybe, just maybe, we could eradicate all diseases especially communicable ones like the Bubonic Plague.

This article has been published online in The ELECTRON, Quezon City Science High School’s paper. – Ed.