Bubonic Plague Found in Michigan Woman
A Michigan woman says she has contracted bubonic plague. She likely caught it during a trip to Colorado.
Health officials say they have found the first-ever confirmed case of bubonic plague in Michigan.
The Marquette County individual apparently contracted the disease during a trip to Colorado.
Officials say the adult has a localized form of plague that is not contagious. They say the adult was hospitalized during the past few weeks and poses no health threat to the public.
Bubonic plague is typically caught by being bitten by an infected flea or coming in contact with certain animal body fluids and can be lethal.
Known as the “black death,” the plague killed millions of Europeans during the 1300’s.
Health officials say bubonic plague is rare in the U.S., with about half-a-dozen cases reported annually.
But this year there has been twice the usual number of cases in the Western part of the nation. Officials are at a loss to explain the increase.
