Californian Dies from Rare Disease After 'Trapping, Feeding and Breeding Wild Rats' in an RV
Yahoo • • health
Key Points:
- A California resident died from leptospirosis after living in an RV severely infested with wild rats, with their living partner also contracting the rare bacterial disease.
- Leptospirosis spreads through contact with infected animals' urine or body fluids, and the risk is higher for those living in close proximity to rats or animal urine, such as people experiencing homelessness.
- Berkeley city manager Paul Buddenhagen emphasized that the risk to public health is very low, as person-to-person transmission is extremely uncommon, and no other cases have been reported at the nearby Harrison Street encampment.
- Alameda County Vector Control responded by trapping and removing rats from the RV, which was subsequently destroyed after confirming no rats remained, while ongoing testing showed a high prevalence of leptospirosis in local wild rats.
- The death was described as an extreme and isolated incident, with city officials proposing increased awareness and research to prevent future infections linked to rat exposure.