Death in central ND attributed to hantavirus

Estimated read time: Less than a minute

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The death of a person in central North Dakota is being attributed to hantavirus disease.

The state Health Department did not identify the adult victim or say where the person lived.

It is the first case of the disease spread by infected mice since 2009. Only 12 cases have been reported to the state Health Department since 1993, when the virus was first recognized in the U.S. There have been seven deaths in North Dakota including the most recent one.

Epidemiologist Michelle Feist (fyst) says people should take precautions if they are cleaning in areas where signs of rodents are present.