A Yosemite National Park housekeeper last week sprayed a bleach mixture on the floor of a 'Signature Tent Cabin' to kill possible mouse-borne hantavirus, which has killed three visitors and sickened five others.
By Michael Winter, USA TODAY
A third Yosemite National Park visitor has died from mouse-borne
hantavirus, and Reuters reports that warnings were issued to an
additional 12,000 people who camped in backcountry sites since June or
have reservations to camp there.
Update at 7:17 p.m. ET:
Yosemite Ranger Kari Cobb tells On Deadline that 12,000 e-mails are
"going out as we speak." She said they are being sent to people who have
either stayed in the Tuolumne area of the park and the High Sierra Camps since June 1, when they opened, or who have the required wilderness permits to camp there through Sept. 17.
Cobb
said park officials did not have a breakdown on the percentage of
visitors who were from California, the United States or overseas. She
also said the third person to die from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome was
from West Virginia. Park officials are not identifying the victims.
Additionally,
Cobb said she could not confirm a Reuters report regarding two possible
hantavirus cases in France, saying that information did not come from
Yosemite officials.
Update at 6:18 p.m. ET: Reuters is reporting that hantavirus warnings have been sent to an additional 12,000 Yosemite visitors who camped in backcountry sites. No confirmation yet from the National Park Service.
Original post: A third Yosemite National Park visitor has died from mouse-borne hantavirus, which has also sickened five others, Reuters reports.
The five "are either improving or recovering," the National Park Service says in a news release.
Seven of the eight people became ill with hantavirus pulmonary syndrome
(HPS) after staying in one of the "Signature Tent Cabins" in the Curry
Village campground between June 10 and late August. The other confirmed
case occurred in a visitor who stayed in several High Sierra Camps, far from the valley floor, the California Department of Public Health reports.
The
confirmed cases include six people from California, one from
Pennsylvania and one from West Virginia. French health officials are
also investigating two suspected hantavirus cases from possible exposure
during visits to Yosemite.
Authorities have estimated that up to
10,000 visitors who stayed in the insulated tent cabins might have been
exposed to the virus. The cabins have been closed.
The park
service says the types of hantavirus that cause HPS in the United States
"cannot be transmitted from one person to another."
Here's background on the illness and virus, which is described as rare but serious:
According
to the CDC, symptoms of HPS generally begin from one to five weeks
after exposure. Early symptoms include fatigue, fever, chills, and
muscle aches. About half of patients will experience headaches, nausea,
vomiting, dizziness and abdominal pain. The disease progresses rapidly
(4-10 days after initial symptoms) to include coughing, shortness of
breath and severe difficulty breathing. Early medical attention greatly
increases the chance of survival in cases of HPS. It is recommended that
if a recent visitor to Yosemite National Park has any of the symptoms
listed above, that they seek medical attention immediately and advise
their health care professional of the potential exposure to hantavirus.