Learn from the past: How ex-Yugoslavia quickly stopped the spread of smallpox/ black pox virus in 1972?

Sometimes we just have to learn from the past if we want to save our present and future and prevent pandemic situation, like we have today with corona virus (COVID-19). 

In February 1972, one clergyman returned to ex-Yugoslavia from Iraq carrying, and not even knowing, a smallpox virus. Even though he got well soon, thanks to a smallpox vaccine he had received before, he managed to spread the virus in the Serbian province of Kosovo in ex-Yugoslavia and then, through another infected person by him, further to Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. In March, just one month after everything started, martial law was declared and the government started with measures to contain the epidemic, such as blocking borders, all public activities, roads, villages and 10,000 people, who may have been affected by the virus, were quarantined in a hospital and hotels, guarded by the army. With the help of the World Health Organization, almost all of the population of ex-Yugoslavia (18 million at that time) was revaccinated in April and in late May the epidemic was over. 

Even though 175 people were infected and 35 people died from the virus, 10,000 people were quarantined and guarded by the Yugoslavian army. Afterwards, the Yugoslavian government was praised internationally for managing to successfully contain the epidemic, which could have led to the catastrophic consequences if the government did not act quickly enough and if the virus managed to spread further to Europe.

Later, in 1982, director Goran Markovic created a film “Variola Vera” which was about what happened during this ordeal.

What every country should learn from this event, that happened in ex-Yugoslavia, is that they should immediately block their borders when an epidemic starts and then proceed with martial law measures to keep the virus contained. This way many lives could be saved and a pandemic prevented.

Written by Natasa Glamoclija