CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Health officials say a third person has died from a rodent-borne illness linked to Yosemite National Park.
The West Virginia resident had visited the California park since June. Kanawha-Charleston Health Department director Dr. Rahul Gupta withheld the victim’s name at a news conference Thursday.
Last week, Yosemite officials said up to 10,000 people who stayed in certain cabins might have been exposed to hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Gupta says the virus has now killed three people and sickened five others.
There is no cure. People can be infected by inhaling the virus or by handling infected rodents. Infected people usually have flu-like symptoms including fever, shortness of breath, chills and muscle and body aches.
