Bubonic plague case confirmed in Mongolia; Health Ministry

ULAANBAATAR: A suspected case of bubonic plague reported in Mongolia's Govi-Altai province has been confirmed as positive, the country's Health Ministry said on Tuesday. "The result of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test revealed on Monday night that bubonic plague caused the death of a 15-year-old boy," Xinhua news agency quoted Dorj Narangerel, head of public relations and surveillance department of the Ministry, as saying to the media. The teenager on Sunday died in Tugrug district on the way to a hospital.

He was found to have eaten marmot meat with two of his friends three days before his death, according to the health ministry.

His two friends and 15 others who had contact with them have been isolated and treated at local hospitals, the official said, warning citizens not to eat marmot meat. Bubonic plague is a bacterial disease spread by fleas living on wild rodents such as marmots.

It can kill an adult in less than 24 hours if not treated in time, according to the World Health Organization. In May 2019, two people in the country of Mongolia died from the plague, which they contracted after eating the raw meat of a marmot - the same type of rodent the second suspected case came into contact with. (IANS)

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