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Colorado officials are sounding the alarm after a toddler and two others who touched down on a flight at Denver International Airport earlier this month contracted measles.
A vaccinated adult who was onboard Turkish Airlines flight 201, which landed in Denver on May 13, was the most recent person to test positive for the infectious disease, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced Thursday.
Two other cases in the state have also been linked to the same flight, including an out-of-state traveler and an unvaccinated child under 5.
“Local public health agencies are contacting passengers and crew on the flight who were seated or working close to the person with measles and all lap children on the plane,” officials said in relation to the latest detection.
Health authorities have been on high alert ever since the first passenger — the out-of-state traveler — tested positive last week.
The passenger was in the international terminal before staying overnight at the nearby Quality Inn and Suites Denver International Airport, officials said.
The infectious person then returned to the airport on May 14 and boarded a domestic flight.
The child, who was described as a “toddler,” was confirmed to have the disease late last week after recently traveling with relatives to “multiple international locations with increased measles cases,” according to officials.
“The child was unvaccinated and remains hospitalized. The patient is placed in appropriate isolation so there’s no ongoing exposure risk to other patients and families at the hospital,” the health department said last Friday.
“This situation underscores the critical importance of vaccination. Staying up to date on vaccinations and being aware of health risks when traveling are important ways to protect yourself and your community,” Dr. Rachel Herlihy, state epidemiologist and deputy chief medical officer at the state’s health department said.
“Measles is highly contagious, and we are working swiftly to identify and notify anyone who may have been exposed. Vaccination remains the most effective protection against this preventable disease.”
It comes as the US grapples with an influx of measles cases after an outbreak in Texas earlier this year.
Since the outbreak in the southwest US began in the late winter, two elementary school-aged children in the epicenter in West Texas and an adult in New Mexico have died of measles.
All of them were unvaccinated.
With Post wires
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