Earth Watch Report - Biological Hazards
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| Today | Biological Hazard | USA | State of Arizona, [Graham County] |  |
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Biological Hazard in USA on Thursday, 23 May, 2013 at 04:46 (04:46 AM) UTC.
| Description | |
| Authorities say a Graham County man has died of complications from the hantavirus, the first reported case of the disease this year. The Graham County Health Department says the 39-year-old man died earlier this month, but no additional information was immediately available Wednesday. The hantavirus is a rare disease that exhibits symptoms similar to the flu including fever, muscle aches and vomiting. Thirty-four cases of the virus have been recorded in Arizona since 2001. Of those, 38% were fatal. Health experts say there’s no specific treatment for the hantavirus and victims should seek medical attention as soon as they notice symptoms. Officials recommend sealing up any openings or crawl spaces around the household that could shelter unwanted rodents and placing traps in areas where rodent droppings have been detected. | |
| Biohazard name: | Hantavirus |
| Biohazard level: | 4/4 Hazardous |
| Biohazard desc.: | Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release. |
| Symptoms: | Hantaviruses are negative sense RNA viruses in the Bunyaviridae family. Humans may be infected with hantaviruses through urine, saliva or contact with rodent waste products. Some hantaviruses cause potentially fatal diseases in humans, such as hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), but others have not been associated with known human disease. |
| Status: | confirmed |
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