Asian flu--1957/8 was a more deadlier strain than this pandemic we have now as globally, it killed 2-4million when we had a count of a world population of 3billion compared to now, 2020 where it's 7.5billion.
So bad was Asian flu that it only took 8 months to travel from Hong Kong to the UK.
We didn't have media hysteria whipping up fear back then, nor was there a lockdown. Between 9-12 million caught the disease in this country. In context, we have 260,000 confirmed cases of Covid 19. Deaths have mainly been attributed to underlying health problems.
Yes, we were far less densely populated in 1957 so social distancing wasn't the problem as it is now.
There are many aspects of it's ease in spreading in 2020, travel being the largest spreader which attracts crowds.
Severity of the Asian flu pandemic meant that it affected the young as badly as Covid does from 45yrs onwards. Asian flu sufferers varied in age from 5-14yrs and those children who contracted it died within 48hrs of admission.
I worked on such a ward which had been put aside for those with the 1957 pandemic. I was a cadet nurse and at 16/17 I saw deaths in young people who'd been left gasping for breath. I remember the ward being full of steam kettles and oxygen tents. It went on for nigh-on a year.
Given the population we have now we should have shut down completely in March and put economy etc to one side for 3 months which would have avoided the shambles that we have now.!!