Croydon typhoid outbreak of 1937
The Croydon typhoid outbreak of 1937, also known as the Croydon epidemic of typhoid fever, was an outbreak of typhoid fever in Croydon, Surrey, now part of London, in 1937. It resulted in 341 cases of typhoid (43 fatal), and it caused considerable local discontent leading to a media campaign and a public inquiry.

The source of the illness remained a mystery until the cases were mapped out using epidemiological method. The origin was found to be the polluted chalk water well at Addington, London, which supplied water to up to one-fifth of the area that is now the London Borough of Croydon. Coupled with issues around the co-operation between the medical officers and the administrators of the Borough, three coincidental events were blamed; changes to the well structure by repair work, the employment of a new workman who was an unwitting carrier of typhoid, and failure to chlorinate the water.
Q83319
typhoid fever
Concept
Q2213391
Croydon
LOC
Q133805
epidemiological method
Concept
Q208791
chalk water well
Concept
Q1788898
Addington
LOC
Q26888
London Borough of Croydon
LOC
Q1549382
unwitting carrier of typhoid
Concept
Q1075344
chlorinate
Concept
Q85754695
Croydon typhoid outbreak of 1937
UNK
1937-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1937
DATE
1937-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1937
DATE
+43^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
43
NUMBER
located in the administrative territorial entity