Hong Kong Flu

The Pandemic of 1968 was caused by a novel strain of Influenza A Virus, similar to the 1957 pandemic. It was referred to as the Hong Kong flu because the first outbreak was recorded in Hong Kong on July 13, 1968. The outbreak spread to Vietnam and Singapore during the following weeks. The next wave came to the Philippines, Australia, India, and Europe. The virus became widespread in the United States in December 1968 after soldiers from Vietnam brought it home. Deaths peaked in the winter of 1960 when the virus spread to the rest of the world. It killed roughly a million people worldwide and 100,000 in the United States. People dying and missing work impacted the economy negatively.