An outbreak of leptospirosis centered around a large encampment in North Berkeley has spread to at least two humans, killing one and hospitalizing the other, city officials announced Wednesday.
The patients, who lived together in an RV about a mile from the homeless encampment at the intersection of Eighth and Harrison streets, represent the first known human cases of the disease in Berkeley in over a decade.
The outbreak also seems to have spread far beyond the one-third-mile radius where health officials first warned Berkeleyans to take precautions in January following detection of the disease in rats and dogs in late 2025. Nevertheless, city health officials believe that the risk to housed city residents is still “extremely low,” since they are less likely to be in contact with rats and can take other steps to avoid the bacteria, though people who live in camps or RVs or otherwise have more exposure to rats are in greater danger…