# Disease Outbreak + Government



## mulierrex (Nov 1, 2016)

I'm not sure if this counts as fantasy but I think it's close enough because it's not nonfiction. In the case of a disease outbreak (shameful but I'm talking zombies), how would our modern American (and international powers) military and CDC handle it? The main points of transfer are human bite (I.E. saliva and blood contact), drinking public (I.E. sink or river) water, and being bitten by bats (which also have gotten a rabies-like disease that drives them to bite humans). If it was just being bitten by humans I'd assume it'd be taken care of quickly. But what about with the water and bats? And besides just quarantining places and taking the infected, how would they warn the public? Would it be on the news, a presidential alert? Safe zones? Curfews?


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## Malik (Nov 1, 2016)

The CDC actually published a Zombie Survival Guide a couple of years ago.


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## X Equestris (Nov 1, 2016)

I can tell you that infected bat populations would be culled.  You'd have to be screened before donating blood, if there's any gap between infection and turning.  The water is trickier.  Having sink water carry it implies that water treatment plants are incapable of killing it.  I'm not sure what you could do about it, other than have it be untreated water only that gets contaminated.

Obviously this would be all over the news.  I can easily see safe zones getting set up, but folk trying to get to them might become a hazard in its own right.


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## mulierrex (Nov 1, 2016)

Identifiable symptoms usually occur within two hours. Thanks for the response, and you too Malik! I'll have to look that up.


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## Chessie (Nov 9, 2016)

Have you read or watched The Walking Dead? They portray pretty well what one might expect: chaos, the military overrun, CDC giving up, but people being killed and contained in the beginning. There is also Contagion which is a pretty good one to watch and might answer some questions for you.


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## Russ (Nov 9, 2016)

The book World War Z might have some ideas for you.

In first world countries contagion control can be very sophisticated with lots of resources ready to be deployed quite quickly, like when SARs hit.  

Good internet searching will lead you to how the government plans to deal with significant outbreaks and there are lots of books in the field as well, including Hot Zone and others.  

closing schools etc and preventing public gatherings is base line stuff.  Bats could simply be killed on mass, quite quickly if necessary.

Perhaps I have a more optimistic view of our ability to deal with a contagion.  Especially one with as poor vector of transmission as human bites and such a short incubation period.


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## K.S. Crooks (Nov 13, 2016)

containing the spread of disease is the first step. This would involve isolation and quarantine measures, bringing in bottled water to people and restricting movement. Airlines, trains and major highways will have limited availability. If bats have a disease that they can pass to humans then it probably can be transmitted between all mammals. If a cure or vaccine is found it would need to be given to people must at risk first, while also distributing the medicine in food pellets for other animals to be treated. If the disease can be spread through water then perhaps the cure can be as well or at least require people to boil their water before using it. You should look at what has been done in the past to handle outbreaks of rabies, Ebola, cholera and smallpox.


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## SeverinR (Nov 16, 2016)

Just a note,
drinking water contamination, would possibly mean some water sources could be contaminated and some would not.

If it is spread in rainwater, any open body of water that is used for public water would be contaminated.
Some water sources are underground and would be less likely for a while, to be contaminated.  (desert communities get their water underground.) For the contaminated water to reach the underground source would mean it went through the ground without being killed or filtered out.  But the ground effect would eventually stop and be contaminated.
Just something else to think about.
You could also have a bad well be the origin of the contamination.


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