History Lesson - What Happens When We Open Up Society Too Early

Smithsonian Mag: World War I: 100 Years Later - Philadelphia Threw a WWI Parade That Gave Thousands of Onlookers the Flu - The city sought to sell bonds to pay for the war effort, while bringing its citizens together during the infamous pandemic

Within 72 hours of the parade, every bed in Philadelphia’s 31 hospitals was filled. In the week ending October 5, some 2,600 people in Philadelphia had died from the flu or its complications. A week later, that number rose to more than 4,500. With many of the city’s health professionals pressed into military service, Philadelphia was unprepared for this deluge of death.