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Cholera Pandemics 1817
About Cholera Pandemics 1817
Seven cholera pandemics have occurred since 1817, killing millions. The first pandemic began in Jessore, India, in 1817 and spread through Asia and the Middle East. The second pandemic reached Europe and North America in the early 1830s. The third pandemic, of the mid 19th century, is often considered the deadliest, killing over a million people in Russia alone. John Snow demonstrated that cholera was waterborne during the 1854 Broad Street outbreak in London. The fourth pandemic of 1863 to 1875 reached Africa. The fifth pandemic of 1881 to 1896 drove investment in urban water and sewer systems worldwide. The sixth pandemic of 1899 to 1923 was largely confined to Asia. The seventh pandemic, caused by the El Tor biotype, began in 1961 in Indonesia and continues today. Cholera pandemics drove the development of modern sanitation, germ theory, and international health cooperation. The WHO estimates 1.3 to 4 million cholera cases annually.
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