Sierra Jane Downing a 7-year old from Colorado thought she was suffering from the flu, as she had felt sick following a camping trip with her family. However, she suffered a seizure and her father knew there was something seriously wrong with the youngster. He rushed her to a nearby hospital where when she arrived her temperature was 107 degrees. At first, doctors were baffled at what could be causing her sickness.
Eventually the Downing family learned that their daughter had developed bubonic plague, one of the last things they or anyone else would have thought of. The bubonic plaque killed close to one third of the entire population of Europe back in the 14th century, but today is extremely rare. There have been no confirmed cases of it in Colorado for six years. It is treatable when caught early.
Health officials from Washington said they know of two other bubonic plague cases that have been confirmed in the U.S. thus far in 2012 and one that is probable. Those numbers represent a normal year. The other two confirmed cases were in Oregon and New Mexico, while the probable case also was in Oregon. None of the cases has been fatal.
Generally, Plague is transmitted by infected fleas that bite humans, but it also is transmitted through direct contact with animals that are infected, including rabbits, rodents and pets.
Centers of Disease Control officials acknowledged that a number of illnesses that are linked to pests and insects have been surfacing of late throughout the U.S. Those frightening illnesses include the West Nile virus that is mosquito-borne, the Hantavirus linked to campers at Yosemite National Park and now the bubonic plague cases.
