[2]. At this time the regular, or permanently established, hospitals located in the 5th District were as follows: Wilkes-Barré City, Mercy, Wyoming Valley Homœopathic and Riverside Hospitals in Wilkes-Barré; Nesbitt West Side Hospital, Dorranceton; Pittston Hospital, Pittston; Berwick Hospital, Berwick, Columbia County; State Hospital of the Middle Coal Field of Pennsylvania, Hazleton; State Hospital, Nanticoke; Bloomsburg Hospital, Bloomsburg, Columbia County.
On October 10 the first emergency hospital was opened, in the Central High School building at Wanamie, with Dr. William H. Corrigan physician in charge and Miss Emily G. Jones, Graduate Nurse, as chief nurse. The same day the emergency hospital at Catawissa was opened, with Dr. S. B. Arment physician in charge and Miss Hannah C. Breisch, Graduate Nurse, as chief nurse. On October 11 the third emergency hospital was opened, in the High School building at Exeter, with Dr. James Dixon physician in charge and Miss Jessie Cunningham and Mrs. Ernest W. Hogg, Graduate Nurses, as chief nurses.
Dr. Elmer L. Hinman, having been sent to Wilkes-Barré by Dr. Royal S. Copeland, Commissioner of the Health Department of the city of New York, reported to the County Medical Inspector for duty on October 12, and was assigned to the Wanamie Emergency Hospital to assist Dr. Corrigan.
At this time it was estimated that there were at least 1,000 influenza and pneumonia cases, reported and unreported, in Wilkes-Barré—new cases appearing at the rate of nearly 100 per day. The Wilkes-Barré City Hospital refused, because of lack of room and nurses, to receive any more cases. Nurses and doctors everywhere were overworked, and the situation at Glen Lyon (in Newport Township) and in Hazleton and its vicinity was appalling.
In the afternoon of October 12 a meeting of Chairmen of committees and Division Chairman was held with the County Medical Inspector at the rooms of the Chamber of Commerce, when it was decided that trucks should be secured for the purpose of delivering food daily to the homes of the sick, where such service was needed. Whereupon Percy A. Brown and Frank F. Matheson each offered trucks for this purpose. It was suggested that Mrs. P. J. Higgins of Wilkes-Barré should be placed in charge of the cooking at the Armory canteen—the necessary arrangements for this service, however, to be left in the hands of the Canteen Committee.
Dr. Mengel suggested that a telegram be sent to the proper authorities at Washington, urging them to leave here, during the progress of the epidemic, all Red Cross nurses now in this vicinity. General Dougherty reported that he had communicated with the Hon. A. Mitchell Palmer and other Government officials at Washington relative to having army surgeons sent here from Camp Crane, Allentown, Pennsylvania, and he had been assured that ten officers of the Medical Department would be sent.
Dr. S. M. Wolfe of Wilkes-Barré, who had recently returned from Massachusetts, where he had assisted in combating the epidemic, told of the various organized methods and plans pursued in dealing with the disease in that State.
Mr. William J. Ruff, Cashier of the Luzerne County National Bank, Wilkes-Barré, was then elected Treasurer of the General Committee.
At the close of this meeting General Dougherty telegraphed to Maj. Gen. Rupert Blue, Surgeon General, U.S.A., Dr. H. A. Garfield, U. S. Fuel Administrator, and Miss Carrie Noyes, Director of Field Nursing, American Red Cross, at Washington, D. C., as follows:
“The following Red Cross nurses have been called to leave for service on Tuesday, October 15: Miss Edith Evans, Miss Elsie Banker and Mrs. Lena Krum of Wilkes-Barré; Miss Hazel Smith of Tunkhannock, Pa., and Miss Bessie Evans of Kingston, Pa. The influenza situation in Wyoming Valley is of such a serious nature, and there is such a dearth of nurses, that, as Chairman of the General Committee of Wyoming Valley (whose efforts are being directed toward the stamping out of this pestilence, in order to conserve the lives of our citizens and thus maintain the production of anthracite coal, which is now seriously affected by the prevailing sickness), I appeal to you to direct these nurses to remain here to take up their duties in emergency hospitals now being established. I trust that this appeal will be fully appreciated by you. We are fearfully short of nurses as well as doctors. We can use a great many physicians and nurses.”