Officials in Washington said four agricultural workers presumptively tested positive for avian flu, marking the first human cases of the disease in the state.
The workers had been in contact with infected poultry at an egg farm in Franklin County, which is located in the southern half of the state, according to the Washington Department of Health.
The individuals experienced mild symptoms and were given antiviral medication. Officials said more workers on the farm are being tested, so the total number of people infected may change.
Other employees or contractors who may have worked on a poultry farm in the Benton or Franklin area of Washington since Oct. 7 should contact the health department at (509) 460-4550 if they have symptoms such as red eyes or a respiratory infection, health officials advised.
About 800,000 birds on the farm were euthanized after testing done by the Washington State Department of Agriculture on Oct. 15 showed there was a bird flu outbreak, officials said.
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Washington is now the sixth state to identify a human infection of H5N1. California recently reported two more human cases from an infected dairy farm, raising the state’s total to 13.
According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 27 cases of humans being infected with the bird flu this year — not counting the recent cases in Washington.
Most cases have been among workers at farms who were in contact with infected animals, but there was a rare and unusual “one-off” case reported in Missouri in which the infected individual had not been in contact with any infected animals.
Nevertheless, the CDC said the public health risk is still low and it is watching the situation carefully.
