SOMES ISLAND CASES

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 10281, 16 May 1919, Page 6

SOMES ISLAND CASES

FiVE DEATHS

THE MEN'S STATEMENTS AND OFFICIAL REPORT.

MANUKA'S CitEW RESUMES

Two members of the crew of the Manuka called at this office yesterday and made a statement concerning the members of the crew who remain on Somes Island. The departure of the steamer had been delayed because the crew refused to go to sea unless these men were removed from the island to a hospital on the mainland. - X-Wo members of the . crew -ha ,~ forward yesterday said that. * S r nad explained that one o. the S men JU on the, »land ,u mSa. condition wmen made his r f ul yy*" !**y and the otner two had decidea that they' would preter to stay tiiot», niovidld'they were gaaranteed the sei«cw ot a doctor and u nurse. t«u."ouentW tho hold-up of the vessel hua Sl2u tabanaonea; turn she would proceed uu iier voyage to bydney. »a uuly B aned during tne artt noon. uuo «1 we crew, who was quarantined oa the wland lor some time, «»ua tnere » no statements patched uy- the •iVe were taere tor nearly a «eeK, he said, -with one nurse, who was «* ttuty almost tne whole time bne did , ue/tttiuosv and lasted as long «a «»e could I'inaily. wo Delievu, she. u«manaed assistance, but, of course, tne Cp should have been, forthcoming from the start. . From Friday evening UU Monday morning there was no duc%n the Friday morning I wanted to !use the telephone to ring up the secretary of tne seamen's Union. I «as told that it was ior,the use or the stair ouiy, hut a little later 1 noticed that someone else could use it to ring up hi= triends. i said that I wanted to secure a priest and another clergyman, uno. was told i could not do that till the doctor came. Finally we got Father Oignan, and he did his best. ••Five men' died on tho island, and then- deaths were due, without any doubt, ,to the snouKing conditions there. ' The five were: James McGinley. "George Taylor.'' John riullivan. Charles Larsena. John Wall. j. .. "Those still on the island are Johnson, John .Donovan and Robert Steele." POSITION EXPLAINED TO CREW MEN AGREEIra"wORK SHIP. A statement with regard to the men of the s.s. Manuka, quarantined ob Somes Island, was made to a "Times" representative yesterday by the Ho». \i. >V. Russell. Minister for Public Health. '',,,-■ * •".this morning," said the Minister, "t'he= Chief Health Officer. Dr V aimtine, visited the Manuka to discuss with the crew of the vessel the trouble thut was being made with regard to tho three men on Somes Island, as a result of which the ship was held up. Dr Vnlintine informed me that two ot the three men referred to wero comipletely restored to health, and that (consequently there was no need tor their turther detention on the quarantine island. In the case of the third man, however, his illness rendered it impossible for him to be removed. After meeting Dr Valintine and hear' ing bis explanation, the men expressed their complete satisfaction, and agreed •to work the ship." , Last evening one of the two convalescent patients had been normal for nine days and the other for eight days. The. sick man was reported to be making splendid progress towards recovery. "PAST REPAIR " QUARANTINE BUILDINGS. ADMITTED TO BE UNSUITABLE. Tho .Minister for Public Health received yesterday from Dr Watt, district health officer, a long report dealing seriatim with the allegations as to the conditions on Somes Island made by members of the crew of the s.s. Manuka and reported in the "New Zealand Times" of Wednesday last. With reference to the condition of the buildings on the island, Dr Watt says:—"lt. must be freely admitted that the quarantine buildings on Somes Island are, on account of their age, in a most unsatisfactory condition. Generally speaking, thev are past repair, a great deal of the timber of which they are built being borer-infested and decayed. Any expenditure on these buildings can only be justified on the grounds of urgency, it being a simpler and speedier matter to renovate the existing buildings than to provide new ones." "There are," he adds, "four bathrooms on the island. One of these, in I the. small military, hospital, was reservjed for the. stewardesses and nurses, while two were available for tho male contacts. Owing to the dependence on the rain supply and tho need for economy when a, large body of men is on the island, water is not laid on to these two latter baths. . Ample water, however, both hot and cold, was available for carrying." The latrines, states Dr Watt, are of- the military typo, and kept in good order. "The provision of further water-closets is governed by the water sur>ply. At present the Public Works Department is excavating a large storage reservoir. When this is completed, it will be possible to nrovide a few additional waterclosets, but the bulk of j the latrines must always be of the pan type with earth burial." BROKEN WINDOWS.

"None of the windows' in the hospital building wherein patients wero treated ore broken," states the report. "It is true that some of the windows in the other buildings are broken. The matter of a general overhaul of the buildings has been awaiting attention by the Public Works Department until the now hutments are erected. But for the arrival of the Manuka theso matters ■'would now be well in band." ! Somes Island Is undoubtodlv exposed to all the winds that blow. The hospital is at the north-west corner of tho group of buildings, and has its long axis running north and south. It is -moderately sheltered from the south wind bv adjacent buildings, and to a leshpr degree from the north wind. The stewardesses were quartered in

the small military hospital recently erected by the Defence Department. This building has only one four-bed ward,* and was intended for cases requiring nirdical or surgical attention and not for infectious- diseaso cases. Tho stewardesses were kept apart from other "contacts" on the island and were very comfortably housed. CARRYING INFECTION.

The first nurse to go on the island was accommodated in the small military hospital just referred to. She had a separate room and a separate entrance thereto. She kept quite apart from tho stewardesses, except on one occasion when she spent about half an hour in their company on their invitation.

"i wish to'point put that, so far as is known, infection in influenza is onlv crried by (a) tho sick, (V) the convalescent, "and (c) tho fully recovered 'carrier' (continues the doctor). Thore is absolutely no evidence that a healthy person in attendance on the sick, not coming within the latter category, can carry infection. I considered it advisablo, however, that the nurse should not a&sociato with health 'contacts,' and -gave instructions accordingly." The other two nurses were accommodated in a roonl in the administrative block next door to the ward containing tho patients.. THE MEDICAL SERVICE. Dr. Kendall, who was the medical officer in charge of the patients, visited Somes Island daily. In addition, he was in direct telephonic communication with Somes Island at all hours and received progress reports of his patients in this manner from tho nurse. "I personally visited tho island every second day, and on several ocoasions saw the patients along with Dr. Kendall. I do not think this can be called inadec.uato medical attention." SEGREGATION OF THE SICK. After detailing the course of the outbreak, Dr. Watt states: "The £act that only the one case became infected after the removal of the crew to the island is sufficient proof that the quarantine arrangements were satisfactory and completo. The.sick were strictly segregated to hospital, and had no communication with the other people on tho island. It is correct that the orderly from the hospital went to the cookhouse for the patients' food. Again, 1 wish to point out that there is no evidence that -a healthy individual who ha 3 not had the diseaso recently can carry influenaa. "When tlie hospital was opened on April 30th, the nursing staff consisted of Nurse Crawley and a medical orderly (Private Willis, N.Z.M.0.). At tliis time tihere were only five patients, two of whom were convalescent. On May Ist four more patients* entered the hospital—two from the 'oontacts' on the island and two from the Manuka. Consequently, on May 2nd, Nurse Gray joined the staff. On May Bth, a third nurse (Nurse Roulston) was engaged, and on May 10th another orderly, (E. J. Mills). There was at no time any hesitation in supplying nursing assistance. Nurso Crowley, in the Scsb ms6a.nco, and then Nurses Crowley and Gray, were asked to advise if at any time they required further assistance, and as soon as the request was made the help was forthcoming. The nursing staff, in my opinion, was adequate for tho number of cases, and everything was done for the patieutis that was possible. "AMPLE BEDDING.*"The bedding in the hospital consisted of good quality flax mattresses and pillows. Ample stocks of sheets, pil-low-slips, blunuets, pyjamas, and hotwater bags were available, and were freely drawn upon. The beds were stretcher-beds, with wire-woven mattresses, and wero very comfortable Fires were continually burning in tho tho wards day and night. The bedding for contacts consisted of flax mat* tresses and pillows, with a liberal sup ply of blankets. No sheets or pillowslips were supplied. The bedding was of the quality used by the Defence Department, having, indeed, been supplied by Major McCristell. No limit was placed on the number of blankets, and they were issued freely on demand. That the equipment: on the island was supplied by the Defence Department is sufficient guarantee of its quality. "Tho fact tihe only one oa.se actually contraoted disease on the island —Donovan, who developed the disease some 60 hours after being removed from the .Manuka—is proof that the quarantine arrangements were satisfactory. It must bo admitted, however, that tho buildings in their present condition are not suitable for quarantine purposes. IMPROVEMENTS DELAYED. "There has, unfortunately, been considerable doiay in having improvements made. In the first place, because the original scheme, as set forward by the Hon. tho Minister, to restore all quarantine buildings at a cost of £30,000, had to bo abandoned; and, in the second place, because of unforeseen difficulties in the way of carrying out tho alternative scheme of obtaining hutments from the Defence Department. As you will remember, just prior to tho arrival of the Manuka, definite instructions were given to use such material as would ensure tho minimum of dolay. The Public Works Department, accordingly, propose to erect new buildings, and not to bother with the offer of old hutments from Featherston Camp made by tho Defence Department. At present they are assembling their material and hope to make an early start. "I had your instructions some d/ays ago to have all necessary alterations mado to the old buildings, and I am making arrangomonts for this purpose." REFUSED TO BE REMOVED. Dr. Frengley, deputy-chief health officer, makes tho following memorandum on tho report:—"To tho Hon. tho Minister. —For your information, I havo' to add that the three seamen remaining under treatment on tho island to-day refused to be removed to hospita.l on tho mainland, as was desired by their comrades on the Manuka."