IRVINE, Calif. — Orange County health officials are warning residents after a bat discovered in an Irvine neighborhood tested positive for rabies, a deadly viral disease that attacks the central nervous system and is almost always fatal once symptoms begin.
According to the Orange County Health Care Agency, the bat was found Sept. 28 between 18 Wedgewood and 28 Whispering Pine in Irvine, and anyone who may have touched the bat or witnessed contact with the animal is urged to immediately contact the agency’s Communicable Disease Control Division.
The positive rabies test is the latest reminder that bats remain the primary source of rabies exposures in California and throughout the United States. State surveillance data show Orange County has recorded 30 rabid bats so far in 2026, with bats accounting for all reported animal rabies cases in the county this year…