Boy Dies from Bubonic Plague After Eating Infected Rodent Meat
A teenage boy in Kyrgyzstan died last week from eating infected barbecued meat, fueling fears of a bubonic plague outbreak, as reported by Guardian. The meat was from a marmot, a rodent known to be a carrier of the disease.
Guardian reports that more than 100 people who came into contact with 15-year old Temir Issakunov have been quarantined. This makes the first case of plague in the region in 30 years. The bubonic plague is caused by bacteria that lives in the guts of fleas, and can be transmitted to humans or rodents through flea bites.
This plague is believed to have cause the Black Death, killing about one-third of the European population in the 14th century.