Dr Rita Pemberton
Cholera, the scourge of the 19th century, spread from Asia to Europe, afflicted the UK in 1831 in 1848-49 and again in 1853-54, and entered a Caribbean phase, when it exploded between 1850 and 1867.
The islands of Jamaica and Cuba recorded the largest numbers of fatalities in the region, but the disease spread to the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Martinique, Guadeloupe, the Virgin Islands, Nevis, Grenada, Barbados and Trinidad.
The islands that escaped the calamity were: Haiti, Cayman Islands, St. Martin, St Bethelmy, Montserrat, Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao and Tobago.
Occurring during a period when disease causation was not properly understood and there was an inability to distinguish between this disease and others with similar manifestations, cholera is the story of fear of its deadly danger with its rapid horrifying death. As a disease with no known treatment, it posed a serious threat to society and economy. Under a mandate from the imperial government, the governor in chief in Barbados instructed the island legislatures under his charge to implement appropriate legislation.
In response, on March 15, 1853, the Tobago House of Assembly passed a quarantine law entitled An Act to make Sanitary regulations for the towns of Scarborough and Plymouth and the island generally, which replaced the previous law of 1840 and was proclaimed on August 25, 1853.
The new law sought to prevent the introduction and spread of contagious or infectious diseases in the island. It reflected the response pattern to the disease that was evident in the metropolis, where investigations into its causes revealed the impact of squalor and the lack of sanitation, which stimulated a move to implement sanitary measures.
The administration in Tobago proceeded without any such investigation and launched a sanitation campaign with specific reference to the known problems.
Under the act, the governor was authorised to divide the island into health districts and create a board of health for each town (Scarborough and Plymouth) and its environs and other areas from among resident justices of the peace, medical practitioners and others selected from among the principal members of the community, to manage the cleanup. People who refused to accept nomination to the board were liable to a fine of up to £10.
Meetings of the board were normally to be held once per month, but in the event of the outbreak of any contagious or infectious disease or health emergency, every fortnight, or more frequently as required. Its duties included superintending, directing and ordering the cleaning of streets, lanes, squares, alleys, yards and vacant lots and the immediate removal of offensive matter such as dung, rubbish, weeds and brushwood. The board was empowered to order the washing, cleansing, scouring, whitewashing and fumigating of houses, outhouses and other buildings; cleaning, clearing and purifying drains, gutters, privies, cesspools and ditches in all parts of the country - villages, estates and ba
