Squirrel Carrying Bubonic Plague Causes California Campground to Close

A popular campground in southern California has been closed for at least ten days after officials found a squirrel infected with plague The squirrel was captured two weeks ago and was tested for the potentially lethal disease. The campground was closed over one of the busiest weekends of the camping season. The Los Alamos area campground is between Gorman and Pyramid Lake in the Angeles Forest area.

Officials captured the squirrel on the ground at the campsite. The bubonic plague is deadly to humans and is spread through flea bites. The term bubonic refers to the infection attacking a human’s lymph glands. Plague is a bacterial disease that causes fever, chills and various other symptoms. It is typically treated with antibiotics when caught early enough. The potential for an epidemic looms as officials work to test various nests and habitats of other rodents. Visitors to the forest area are advised to stay away from the cute little critters who typically cover the ground, foraging for food scraps.

Any burrows and nests discovered will be dusted for fleas before the campground reopens. Jonathan Fielding, director for the Los Angeles County Health Department states this is not the first time this type of incidence has occurred. There have been four reported cases of the human plague reported since 1984 in LA County alone. None of those cases ended in fatality. Plague is often found in rock ground squirrels in the California, Nevada, New Mexico, Northern Arizona, and Southern Colorado and Oregon regions.