Two people have recently contracted plague in New Mexico, the state’s Health Department confirmed. That adds to one case already reported this year. All three required hospitalization, none have died.
The newly infected are two women, a 52-year-old and a 62-year-old, from Santa Fe County.
Mexico’s health department stated it “conducted environmental investigations around the homes of the patients to look for ongoing risk and to ensure the safety of the immediate family and neighbors.”
Plague is a bacterial disease carried by rodents and generally transmitted to humans through flea bites. It can also be transmitted by direct contact with infected animals, including wildlife and pets.
“Pets that are allowed to roam and hunt can bring infected fleas from dead rodents back into the home, putting you and your children at risk,” said Dr. Paul Ettestad, public health veterinarian for the Department of Health.
He recommended keeping pets on a leash or at home.
Last year, New Mexico recognized four cases of human plague in 2016 in Bernalillo, Mora, and Rio Arriba counties, and four cases in 2015 in Bernalillo and Santa Fe counties. One person died.
