California resident tests positive for bubonic plague
EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. (NBC, KYMA/KECY) - A California resident is recovering after testing positive for the bubonic plague.
It is believed they were bitten by an infected flea while camping in South Lake Tahoe.
"I think it's crazy. I didn't even know the plague was still something that was going on," said one person.
For both visitors and residents of South Lake Tahoe, it's shocking to hear about a case of the bubonic plague.
"This was very news to me and that's scary," said another person.
"The cases are rare, but they do occur," said Heather Orchard, a nursing manager with the El Dorado County Public Health.
Orchard says plague bacteria are commonly found in higher elevation areas. It's carried by rodents and often transmitted by fleas.
"So, this person was camping in an area in South Lake Tahoe and was bitten likely by a flea," Orchard shared.
The person is now getting medical treatment and recovering at home.
"A lot of the symptoms are very common nausea, vomiting, muscle aches, a bite that they may have noticed," Orchard spoke.
While these cases can be serious, they are curable.
"It's treated with antibiotics and early identification," Orchard explained.
The last human case of plague in the county was in 2020, but officials are routinely tracking it. So far this year, four rodents have tested positive in the Tahoe Basin.
"We should have something letting people know that, 'Hey, be careful. Wear something which should I mean, makes them aware," a person said.
Still, there are a lot of questions from people who frequent the area about a disease they first read about in their history books, and the latest person to test positive.
Health officials say plague bacteria are most often transmitted by bites from the fleas of infected squirrels, chipmunks, or other wild rodents, but dogs and cats can also bring infected fleas into the home, so people are urged to keep pets leashed and away from rodent burrows.
