South Lake Tahoe hiker tests positive for plague, first California case since 2015 – San Francisco Chronicle

Whereas you had the Sunless Death or bubonic plague for your 2020 bingo card, you would tick that procedure now.

A South Lake Tahoe resident has tested distinct for the human plague, the first case in California in five years.

The person, “an avid walker,” also can simply had been bitten by an infected flea while strolling their dogs alongside the Truckee River in the Tahoe Keys procedure, per El Dorado smartly being officials.

Plague is transmitted by fleas, which accumulate the bacteria from squirrels, chipmunks and other wild rodents.

The disease has triggered epidemics at some level of history, killing tens of millions. One-third of Europe’s population died in the 14th century from the plague, or “Sunless Death.”

The plague arrived in the United States in 1900 from rat-infested ships. The closing valuable epidemic in the nation took place in Los Angeles from 1924-1925.

A median of seven human plague cases are reported in the nation as soon as a year, most in the Southwest. The huge majority are the bubonic make of the plague, even supposing there would possibly perhaps be additionally septicemic plague and pneumonic plague.

Plague is now treated with antibiotics, but it absolutely can even be fatal without medicine.

“Plague is finally new in loads of aspects of California, in conjunction with bigger elevation areas of El Dorado County,” acknowledged Dr. Nancy Williams, county public smartly being Officer. “It’s crucial that people spend precautions for themselves and their pets when outdoors, particularly while strolling, mountain climbing and/or tenting in areas where wild rodents are new. Human cases of plague are extremely uncommon but can even be very serious.”

Symptoms in conjunction with fever, nausea, weakness and swollen lymph nodes, which on the total designate up internal two weeks of exposure to an infected animal or flea.

The closing cases of plague in California had been in 2015, with two of us infected in Yosemite Nationwide Park. These had been the first cases since 2006.

Neatly being officials robotically check animals for plague. From 2016 to 2019, El Dorado County identified 20 animals with the plague — all in the South Lake Tahoe procedure.

Officers told no longer feeding squirrels or chipmunks, carrying long pants to diminish exposure to fleas and defend pets with flea medication, in conjunction with cats, that are extremely inclined to plague and could pass it to their residence owners.