Southern Scurvy

Southern Scurvy, also known by its scientific name scorbutus, is a disease that appeared in 1737 among the population of the South Sea Islands. While a clear identification of the causes remains unclear, most scientists have traced the origins of the outbreak back to a late spring frost that wiped out much of the tropical fruit crops in the southern hemisphere. Whatever the case may be, the lack of available food with adequate amounts of Vitamin C in them led to a severe outbreak of scurvy among residents of Zuid-Richel and Trinity Island, both of which relied heavily on imported foodstuffs. As time progressed, the continued failure to meet dietary needs resulted in a near-simultaneous outbreak of scurvy among the population.

Initial reports of fatigue were misattributed to seasonal flu, resulting in little to no treatment of symptoms. Widespread infections appeared all over the islands within four months, resulting in a large number of deaths. These were attributed to an infectious disease and Grand Wulfram was the first island to be placed under quarantine. The quarantine only worsened the situation, since imports were further restricted. Deaths began to occur on Trinity Island as well and the death toll on Zuid-Richel skyrocketed with nearly half the population dead. It was then discovered that the disease had been misdiagnosed when doctors began taking widespread blood tests and compared Vitamin C levels in each of the patients, showing a clear trend and pinpointing the true culprit. But by this time, the number of dead had jumped to over four-thousand, with another three-thousand or more ill or experiencing symptoms. Among those who died was the Lieutenant-Governor, George Middlemore, expediting a national crisis.

With the population reduced to under seven-thousand, and with many ill and needing immediate medical care, the government of the South Sea Islands collapsed. A national emergency was declared and sought the help of Moorland. King MacMartin immediately authorized the MAF fleet to dispatch aid. The remaining population of Grand Wulfram was evacuated to Trinity Island, while emergency shelters and field hospitals were established. Large shipments of Vitamin C were flown in to help alleviate the scurvy. It was quickly recognized that the remaining population could not sustain itself as an independent entity, and the SSI propositioned Moorland to establish a protectorate over Trinity Island, which the kingdom immediately acceded to.

Aftermath

In the aftermath of the epidemic, several independent investigations were launched to review causes and government response. Blame was placed squarely on health officials, who misidentified initial reports of sickness as attributable to other factors. This, combined with the lack of adequate foods high in Vitamin C, and the relatively weak health network available to the islanders at the time, ultimately led to disinformation delaying response time until it was too late. Dr Antonio Grouchi, SSI Health Commissioner, and several of his staff, were eventually pinpointed for the disaster. Having failed to connect the obvious reports together and conduct investigative measures of their own, they delayed response until the scurvy had become widespread and people were too ill to recover. In the subsequent court investigation, Dr Grouchi and his staff were sacked of their positions. Moorland, in taking over SSI's health network as part of the protectorate, also made several changes to policy to ensure a situation such as this does not occur again.