Another person fell ill in the incident, which the city manager said was an “extreme situation”
NEED TO KNOW
- A California resident died from leptospirosis after living in an RV infested with wild rats
- The bacterial disease, spread through infected animals’ urine, is very rare in humans but can spread through contact with infected body fluids
- Berkeley, Calif., city manager Paul Buddenhagen said there is very little risk to public health, as person-to-person infection is extremely uncommon
A California resident has died after coming into contact with several rats.
On June 10, Berkeley city manager Paul Buddenhagen warned of the existence of leptospirosis in some of the city’s rats after the first human death was linked to the rare disease last month, per his memo shared with Berkeley officials on June 10. Though leptospirosis poses very little public health risk, Buddenhagen proposed several measures to increase awareness and research around the city’s rats to prevent future infections.
Leptospirosis is a treatable bacterial disease that is spread through the body fluids of infected animals and can be contracted if humans come into contact with infected body fluids, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The risk of a human contracting the disease is higher for people experiencing homelessness or living in a space with rats or animal urine, per the CDC. This was likely the case with the Berkeley individual who died of leptospirosis, and their living partner who also contracted the disease, Buddenhagen wrote…