Community Corner
Health Crisis in Yosemite
A second person has died of hantavirus. More than 1,000 people may have been exposed to the virus that has a mortality rate of 38 percent.
Yosemite National Park has issued a health alert for some visitors who stayed in the park from mid-June through the end of August. An outbreak of hantavirus, spread mainly by the urine and feces of infected deer mice, has killed at least two people and sickened an unknown number of other campers.
They all stayed in "Signature Tent Cabins" in Yosemite National Park's Curry Village. The park is contacting 1,700 past visitors who may have been exposed to the disease.
Deadly illness
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the illness is deadly in 38 percent of patients.
People infected with hantavirus show symptoms one to five weeks after exposure.
Early symptoms
fatigue
fever
muscle aches
headaches
dizziness
chills
abdominal problems (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain)
Late symptoms
coughing
shortness of breath (lungs fill with fluid)
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