Health officials in California have confirmed a rare case of bubonic plague in a resident of South Lake Tahoe, marking the first human infection in the area since 2020. According to El Dorado County authorities, the patient—whose identity and current condition remain undisclosed—is recuperating at home after likely being bitten by a flea while camping in the Tahoe region, NBC News reports. Officials are investigating the incident but emphasized that such cases are highly uncommon. The 2020 case was California's first confirmed plague case since 2015, when two people were infected in Yosemite National Park, reports CBS News.
Plague, a bacterial disease historically known for causing massive epidemics, typically reaches humans via flea bites, often from fleas that have fed on infected rodents like squirrels or chipmunks. Pets, especially cats and dogs, can unwittingly ferry plague-infected fleas into the house. Symptoms—including fever, nausea, weakness, and swollen lymph nodes—tend to show up within two weeks of exposure. When caught early, the illness responds well to antibiotics.
State health officials have been keeping a close eye on local rodent populations. Between 2021 and 2024, tests revealed that 41 rodents in the region had been exposed to the plague bacteria. This year alone, four more rodents in the Tahoe Basin have tested positive.
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Kyle Fliflet, acting public health director for El Dorado County, underlined the importance of vigilance outdoors, particularly in areas where wild rodents roam. He advised residents and visitors to keep their distance from live or dead wild rodents, avoid camping near animal carcasses, dress in protective clothing, and use insect repellent. (Last month, a person died from a rare form of plague in Arizona.)
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