Plague carriers found in mountains

Thursday, Oct. 5, 2000 | 11:06 a.m.

Scientists have confirmed that four gray foxes and one coyote trapped in the Mount Charleston area this summer carried the bacteria that causes bubonic plague.

They are the first cases of plague found in larger animals in Southern Nevada since 1994. The animals do not necessarily display symptoms of the disease, but serve as possible indicators of a larger outbreak.

Although plague is rare in humans, it is found in rodents throughout the West, primarily in mountain regions.

There has not been a case of plague in humans in Nevada, Clark County Health District spokeswoman Jennifer Sizemore said. A case of plague in an individual was reported in St. George, Utah, in June.

Plague is a bacterial infection treatable with antibiotics. Symptoms include fever, swollen glands, chills, headache or extreme exhaustion.

Bubonic plague is spread to humans through fleas. Other types of plague are septicemic, spread through contact with infected animals, and pneumonic, which is airborne.

The last major outbreak among humans occurred in New Delhi, India, in 1994. About 1,000 people were infected with pneumonic plague, the airborne strain, and 58 died.

The infected animals were tested from June through August in the Kyle and Lee canyon areas, Sizemore said. The animals were destroyed.

For the past 17 years Health District trappers have found chipmunks and squirrels infected with the plague.

Carnivores, such as foxes and coyotes, come in contact with rodents that carry the disease and are considered "sentinel" animals, indicating the disease's spread, Darren Williams of the Agriculture Department's Wildlife Services Division, said.

To avoid exposure to the plague, the Health District recommends:

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