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Black Death Latest: New Country on Alert as Plague Outbreak Threatens to SPREAD

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At least 143 people have died and 2,000 have been infected since the outbreak began in early August.

Nine surrounding African countries were previously told to brace for the disease.

They include South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania Kenya, Ethiopia, Comoros, the Seychelles, Mauritius and Reunion.

But now Malawi’s health secretary has confirmed the country is ready for any outbreaks amid concerns over the African nation’s “porous borders”.

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Dr Dan Namarika, said Malawi has “cross border teams that interface with our Mozambique counterparts”. (Read more from “Black Death Latest: New Country on Alert as Plague Outbreak Threatens to SPREAD” HERE)

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Bubonic Plague Case Confirmed in Michigan

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635778451378692012-bubonic-plagueA Michigan resident has contracted the rare, life-threatening bubonic plague — the first documented case in Michigan’s public health history, state officials confirmed.

The Marquette County adult is recovering after apparently contracting the flea-borne illness during a trip to Colorado. Officials are reassuring the public there is no cause for alarm, despite the disease’s connection to the microorganism that caused the Black Death plague in Europe in the 1300s, killing millions and reshaping history . . .

The bubonic plague, in fact, is notably marked by one or more swollen, tender and painful lymph nodes, usually in the groin, armpit or neck.

With the bubonic plague, people are most often infected by bites from infected fleas or when they have direct contact with the tissues or body fluids from an infected animal. The highest risk is in settings that offer food and shelter for rodents — campsites and cabins, for example, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

The Michigander’s case did not develop into the more contagious pneumonic form of the plague. Pneumonic plague may be passed between humans, infecting the lungs and causing a rapidly developing pneumonia that can lead to respiratory failure and shock, according to the CDC. (Read more from “Bubonic Plague Case Confirmed in Michigan” HERE)

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Man Dies From Plague in 4th Fatal Case in US This Year

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D0MA67-Bubonic-pla_2653834bA Utah man in his 70s has died after contracting the plague, bringing to four the number of deaths from the disease reported in the United States this year, health officials said Thursday.

Officials are still trying to determine how the Utah person contracted the disease, but believe it might have been spread by a flea or contact with a dead animal, according to the state Department of Health.

“That’s the most common way to get it,” said JoDee Baker, an epidemiologist with the agency. “That’s probably what happened, but we’re still doing an investigation into that.”

Plague is a rare disease that is carried by rodents and spread by fleas. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 11 other cases have been reported in six states since April 1. The other three people who died were ages 16, 52 and 79 . . .

Haley said the latest patient got the disease in Utah, possibly after being in rural areas and near campgrounds. The person was hospitalized about five days after coming down with symptoms, and died in mid-August at the University of Utah’s Hospital. (Read more from “Man Dies From Plague in 4th Fatal Case in US This Year” HERE)

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High School Athlete Dies From Rare Case of Plague

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A Fort Collins, Colorado, high school athlete died from the rare septicemic plague the day after he turned 16.

Taylor Thomas Gaes was a sophomore at Poudre High School. He was a pitcher for the baseball team and the football team’s quarterback. With his 6-foot-4, 210-pound frame, he reportedly had the potential for a “brilliant sports career.”

“We often talk about Taylor’s potential as an athlete, but he was much more than that,” Poudre Varsity Baseball Coach Russell Haigh said. “He was a good friend to all of our players. He was a special young man.”

Gaes died on June 8 of septicemic plague, a fast-moving form of the bacterial infection, according to Larimer County Department of Health and Environment spokesperson Katie O’Donnell, The Denver Post reports . . .

O’Donnell said Gaes did not show the typical symptom of the plague — swollen lymph nodes — but instead had muscle aches and pains, reports The Daily Mail. For this reason, authorities were not made aware of the danger of the infection sooner. (Read more from “High School Athlete Dies From Rare Case of Plague” HERE)

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