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Plague-Infected Squirrel Found Near Campgrounds in Angeles National Forest

By Lyn Leahz on July 25, 2013 • ( 3 )

Despite its deadly history, plague infection is serious but rarely fatal in modern times

By Brandon Lowrey| Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 | Updated 4:56 PM PDT | NBC Southern California

A squirrel infected with plague bacteria prompted the closure of popular campgrounds in the Angeles National Forest on Wednesday, according to Los Angeles County health officials.

Officials with the county and the U.S. Forestry Service closed the Broken Blade, Twisted Arrow and Pima Loops areas of the Table Mountain Campgrounds near Wrightwood, a small mountain town northeast of Los Angeles. The squirrel tested positive Tuesday.

The plague disease spreads to humans through bites from infected fleas. And though the infection had once been called the “Black Death” because it killed millions before the advent of antibiotics, infections today in the U.S. are rare and usually not fatal.

“It is important for the public to know that there have only been four cases of human plague in Los Angeles County residents since 1984, none of which were fatal,” said Dr. Jonathan E. Fielding, the county’s Director of Public Health.

It is not rare, however, to find plague in the ground squirrels of the San Gabriel Mountains, according to health officials.

A squirrel trapped in 2010 near the Los Alamos campgrounds in Gorman carried the disease, as did one in 2007 and two in 1996 from the Stoneyvale Picnic Area near La Canada/Flintridge. Another plague-carrying squirrel was found in 1995 near a campground in Vogel Flats.

Officials urged campers, hikers and picnickers in the area to avoid wild animals and particularly ground squirrels, and to make sure all people and pets are protected from fleas.

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