(Image credit: Shutterstock)According to news reports, South Lake Tahoe officials closed several areas in the area after chipmunks tested positive for plague.According to The Tahoe Daily Tribune, officials announced that Kiva Beach in South Lake Tahoe and Taylor Creek Visitor Center will be closed until Friday (Aug. 6), following positive plague tests. According to the Daily Tribune, there was no contact between infected chipmunks and humans.According to the California Department of Health, the bacterium that causes plague, Yersinia Pestis, can be found in certain parts of California. This includes El Dorado County, where South Lake Tahoe is situated. Live Science reported that a South Lake Tahoe resident tested positive for plague last year. This was the first case in the state since 2005.Plague is most well-known for its role in the Black Death that struck Europe in the 1300s. Although infections still happen today, most cases of infection are rare and can be treated with common antibiotics. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are seven cases of plague per year in the United States. According to the CDC, most plague cases are found in northern New Mexico and northern Arizona. According to the agency, Africa has been the site of the majority of human plague cases worldwide since the 1990s.According to the CDC, rodents such as squirrels, rats, and chipmunks and their fleas spread the disease. According to the CDC, human can contract the plague from flea bites and contact with bodily fluids or tissues of infected animals.Officials advised that people who live in or visit plague-endemic regions should avoid contact with wild animals."Do not feed rodents on picnic or campground grounds and don't handle dead or sick rodents," Dr. Bob Hartmann said in a statement. Hartmann is the interim county public-health officer for El Dorado County. The statement stated that pets should be kept away from rodent burrows, and people should wear long pants and insect repellent in order to reduce flea exposure.The statement stated that local and state officials will conduct additional surveys of rodents this week in order to assess the public's risk of plague.Original publication on Live Science
