War and Peacestilence
At the time the US was
drawn into the war in 1941 the country was on the tail end of the Great
Depression. In truth, it was the war that put the country on the path to financial
recovery.
But it sent thousands to
their death, many in island places we call exotic paradises, and hope to visit
one day for vacation. We can visit these places having been vaccinated to hopefully
protect us from any virus or disease we might confront.
But that wasn't true for
the soldiers in WWII. In 1942 the US Government vaccinated all personnel for
tetanus, thyphoid, smallpox, cholera, and yellow fever, which help eradicate
many of the disease and kept outbreaks of the disease from spreading through
the ranks like in prior wars.
Having prepared their army
with every medical advance in their arsenal, the government sent them to war.
Some headed to Europe to fight against the Nazis and others headed to the
islands of the Pacific to face the Japanese.
Those fighting in the
South Pacific, soon found out it was nothing like home. At home they fought
Tuberculosis, and Polio, Flu, and other diseases that scared them, but diseases
they understood and knew some precautions to take. In the South Pacific, they
marched into jungles ready to fight the Japanese unaware they'd battle extremes
of heat and incessant rains that would give them rashes and jungle rot so bad
they itched and bled profusely and could become gangrenous
They fought all kinds of
bugs and disease carrying vermin and ended up with; dengue fever, malaria,
hepatitis, dysentery, Leishmaniasis (black fever,
sand fly disease), cholera and Scrub typhus (brought on by mites).
Living
conditions, and tainted drinking water caused cholera and dysentary, which
would inflict the already fatigued soldier with diarrhea and cause dehydration.
Canvas water bags (lister bags) treated with clorine were hung around camp to
give a fres supply of water, and many soldiers learned (some the hard way) the
importance of a clean canteen and a clean mess kit.
Some
soldiers got Dracunculiasis, or guinea worm disease, from drinking
water infected with water fleas carrying the the guinea worm larva. The soldier
would have no systems initially, but after about a year they would develop a
painful burning feeling, usually on their lower limbs. The worm would then come
out of the skin over a the next few weeks. This disease was usually deadly, but
could you imagine trying to figure out why your skin was blistering only to
learn it was from a drink of water you took almost a year before.
We know
about these diseases, but people today can still get them from visiting
countries where these diseases persist.
But in WWII many hadn't even heard of Dracunuliasis and for
every two men saved on the battlefield two or more might die from disease.
Soldiers
especially if taken prisoner and fed a staple of rice, also fought Beriberi, a
vitamin B1 deficiency that caused a loss of feeling in hands and feet,
vomiting, coma and even death.
Those
who contracted Malaria carried it for years after, as their wasn't much to then
to stop the disease from revisiting when it wanted.
Another
disease that lasted years after the war, was PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder (or Syndrome,) even then we didn't talk about it as much as we do
today. Like a mental malaria PTSD hung around and attacked uninvited long after
the soldier had returned home, leaving soldiers to relive the atrocities of war
over and over again. Pulling them from their now quiet existence back to the
battlefield. And yes, like to today, there were those who took their lives to
kill the echoes of war in their heads forever.
In
Betrayed -- Trail of the Sandpiper Book #1, I talk about some of the pests and bugs on the island of New
Guinea. And show some of what Trauma does. Lieutenant Tyler Merrick lives with
reoccurring dreams from child hood and Pearl Harbor. And Justine Whitcomb is
haunted by her own memories. Remember PTSD doesn't just hit a soldier who's
been to war.
Betrayed
Justine Whitcomb, who,
after the missionary compound where she lives is attacked, is left to get
herself and several children off the island of New Guinea. Escaping might be
easier done if she didn't have to get through Japanese lines and fight Lieutenant
Tyler Merrick of the US Navy in the process.
Lt. Merrick is on a mission to find a rogue spy and
Justine's independent nature and knowledge of the island has him believing she
just might be the spy he's after. Were it not for the children she's protecting,
he would've followed his instincts and taken her prisoner already.
Now she wants him to follow her through the jungle. He not
certain he's ready to trust her. But, if they can't put their fears aside and
learn to trust one another, they might not get off the island alive.
Justine
has seven children to get through enemy lines. Does she have to fight the US
Navy too? Betrayed http://tiny.cc/BetrayedAM
#ChrisFic
