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24 Medical Officers of Health Annual Report.
"The Surveyors have made enquiries as to (he cost of providing
a disinfecting apparatus, and have visited for this purpose the disinfecting
establishments at St. Pancras; the London Hospital.
Whitechapel; the City Depot, Golden Lane; and that of the
Strand District Board of Works. At St. Pancras the apparatus of
Messrs. Goddard, Massey, and Warner is in use, and at the three
other places Mr. Washington Lyon's apparatus is used. The
latter could be provided d and fixed for about £1,000 (exclusive of
cost of site). The cost of maintenance, taking into account
depreciation of plant, repayments of loan, and all other outgoings,
would be about £400 per annum.
" Should the Board decide to carry out the work of disinfecting
without the intervention of a contractor, it would be more economical
to have one establishment for the whole district than to have several
establishments in different localities. On the other hand, there
would probably in such case be difficulties of management and a
want of adequate supervision. The system of the Board is to have
the executive work carried out in the respective parishes separately,
and we are of opinion that the best management and supervision
would be secured by providing an apparatus for a parish specially,
as the work would then have the constant attention of the officers
for that parish. Moreover, the articles requiring disinfectiou would
then have to be conveyed a shorter distance, and the cases would
bo more promptly dealt with as they occur. We desire to add that
there is no cause for complaint as to the efficiency of the system of
disinfection carried out by the Board's contractor. In the parish
of Clapham some inconvenience and additional expense has been
caused by having to provide bedding temporarily for the use of
persons whose bedding is being disinfected, as, owing to the distance
of the contractor's place of business, it is sometimes impossible to
have bedding taken away, disinfected, and returned on the same
day."
The ultimate decision arrived at was that a disinfecting
apparatus should not be provided for the entire district,
but that the matter should be left to each parish. Only
one parish has at present definitely decided to erect one.
Disinfection of public vehicles. After the opening of the Fountain
Fever Hospital within the district, a letter was