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9
5, Church Passage,
Guildhall, E.C. 2,
January, 1933.
TO THE WORSHIPFUL THE PORT OF LONDON SANITARY COMMITTEE.
Gentlemen,
I have the honour to submit my Annual Report as Medical Officer of Health
of the Port of London. I have not included in the text a detailed account of the
health administration of the Port as this was fully described in my last Report, but
I have recorded all events of special interest.
The tonnage of vessels entering the Port of London during 1932 was 26,855,937
tons, being 1,133,129 tons less than during the previous year. Of the 12,567 vessels
arriving from foreign ports, 1,537 vessels were boarded and inspected by your Medical
Officers.
Three hundred and thirty-eight vessels arrived on which there were or had
occurred during the voyage a total of 687 cases of infectious sickness. This total
included 27 cases of Mumps and 289 cases of Influenza. The remaining 371 were
cases of infectious sickness notifiable in the Port Sanitary District, and of these
135 were cases of Pulmonary Tuberculosis, 101 being passengers and 34 members of
crews. Fifty-three cases, all of whom recovered, were treated in your Hospital at
Denton.
In the Training Ships there occurred 26 cases of infectious sickness, including
13 of Measles, 7 of Scarlet Fever, 4 of Chicken-pox, 1 of Cerebro-spinal Fever
and 1 of Tuberculosis. One case of Scarlet Fever and 1. of Erysipelas occurred
amongst the other residents in the Port Sanitary District.
No case of Plague arrived and no Plague-infected rats were found in ships or on
shore in the Port.
Seven hundred and twenty-five rats from ships and 1,587 rats from shore
premises were bacteriologically examined, but in no case was there any suspicion of
Plague infection. A report on an investigation into the number and types of fleas
on rats caught ashore in all parts of the Port is included in this Report, but it may be
mentioned here that although 728 rats were examined not a single specimen of the
Xenopsylla cheopis flea was found. If it is agreed that the " cheopis index" is a
measure of the susceptibility of a district to Plague infection, it would appear that
there is very little danger of the development of an epizootic of rodent Plague in the
Port of London. It is proposed to continue this investigation and to extend it to rats
caught in ships in the Port.
One vessel arrived on which there had occurred 3 cases of Cholera and 10 vessels
arrived on which a total of 14 cases of Small-pox were reported, 2 cases being landed
in this Port.
Under the Parrots (Prohibition of Import) Regulations, 1930, 70 notices were
issued in respect of 283 parrots, &c. One hundred and twenty parrots were admitted
under Ministry of Health permits, 149 were exported and 14 destroved.
During the year your Worshipful Committee issued Notices in 18 different
languages calling attention to the dangers of Venereal Diseases and the facilities for
free treatment at clinics in the vicinity of the docks and River.
Your Sanitary Inspectors made 15,413 inspections of vessels and 5,560 inspections
of shore premises. Orders to cleanse crew quarters were made on 2,119 vessels and
it was found necessary to call for structural alterations and repairs to 399 vessels.
Orders to remedy structural defects were made in respect of 75 premises.