What is a heat dome, and why is it causing dangerously high temperatures in Western U.S. states?
Reply
Deer 255 reaches the end of her journey
Mastodon Vs Mammoth: What’s The Difference?
First-ever human death of bird flu strain H5N2 confirmed in Mexico: WHO
By Katie Dangerfield Global News
Posted June 5, 2024 4:10 pm
Updated June 7, 2024 11:41 am
1 min read
If you get Global News from Instagram or Facebook – that will be changing. Find out how you can still connect with us.Hide message bar
LEAVE A COMMENT
SHARE THIS ITEM ON FACEBOOKSHARE THIS ITEM ON TWITTERSEND THIS PAGE TO SOMEONE VIA EMAILSEE MORE SHARING OPTIONSDESCREASE ARTICLE FONT SIZEINCREASE ARTICLE FONT SIZE
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed the first laboratory-confirmed fatal human case of avian influenza A(H5N2) in Mexico.
The avian influenza A (H5N2) had only previously been reported in birds.
On May 23, Mexican health officials confirmed a case of the H5N2 bird flu strain in a 59-year-old resident of the State of Mexico, who had been hospitalized in Mexico City.
“This is the first laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with an influenza A(H5N2) virus reported globally and the first avian H5 virus infection in a person reported in Mexico,” the WHO said in a statement.
The latest health and medical news emailed to you every Sunday.
It started on April 17 when the patient, who has underlying health conditions, developed a fever, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea and general malaise, the WHO said. On April 24, the patient sought medical care and was hospitalized and died the same day due to complications of his condition.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW ADVERTISEMENT
2:05How can you prepare against bird flu as 3rd case confirmed in U.S.?
Although the source of exposure to the virus in this case is currently unknown, A(H5N2) viruses have been reported in poultry in Mexico, the WHO added.
Based on available information, the WHO said it assessed the current risk to the general population posed by this virus as low.
The bird flu virus has been spreading among more animal species in several countries since 2020. The H5N1 strain was detected in U.S. dairy herds in March, and since then at least three people — all workers at farms with infected cows — have been diagnosed with bird flu, although the illnesses were considered mild.
— With files from Reuters
Protecting Oregon’s state animal would go far to help Beaver State
Person with bird flu died in Mexico, WHO says
By Julie Steenhuysen and Adriana Barrera
June 5, 20244:37 PM PDTUpdated a day ago
Item 1 of 3 A drone view shows the Institute of Epidemiological Diagnosis and Reference after the World Health Organization said a person’s death was caused by the first laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with the A(H5N2) subtype of bird flu reported globally, and the first human infection with the H5 strain of the virus reported in Mexico, in Mexico City, Mexico June 5, 2024. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
[1/3]A drone view shows the Institute of Epidemiological Diagnosis and Reference after the World Health Organization said a person’s death was caused by the first laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with the A(H5N2) subtype of bird flu reported globally, and the first human infection with the… Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Read more
June 5 (Reuters) – A person with prior health complications who had contracted bird flu died in Mexico in April and the source of exposure to the virus was unknown, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday.
WHO said the current risk of bird flu virus to the general population is low.
The 59-year-old resident of the State of Mexico had been hospitalized in Mexico City and died on April 24 after developing a fever, shortness of breath, diarrhea, nausea and general discomfort, WHO said.
Advertisement · Scroll to continue
“Although the source of exposure to the virus in this case is currently unknown, A(H5N2) viruses have been reported in poultry in Mexico,” WHO said in a statement.
It was the first laboratory-confirmed human case of infection with an influenza A(H5N2) virus globally and the first avian H5 virus reported in a person in Mexico, according to the WHO.
Scientists said the case is unrelated to the outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in the United States that has so far infected three dairy farm workers.
Advertisement · Scroll to continueReport this ad
Mexico’s Health Ministry also said in a statement the source of infection had not been identified.
The victim had no history of exposure to poultry or other animals but had multiple underlying medical conditions and had been bedridden for three weeks, for other reasons, prior to the onset of acute symptoms, the WHO said.
Mexico’s health ministry said the person had chronic kidney disease and type 2 diabetes.
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827826
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827827
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827841
https://cds.elements.video/p/plugins/cnx.bridge-1.0.5.html
https://cds.elements.video/p/plugins/cnx.bridge-1.0.5.html
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827857
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827858
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827867
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827868
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827878
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_824827879
“That immediately puts a person at risk of more severe influenza, even with seasonal flu,” said Andrew Pekosz, an influenza expert at Johns Hopkins University.
But how this individual got infected “is a big question mark that at least this initial report doesn’t really address thoroughly.”
In March, Mexico’s government reported an outbreak of A(H5N2) in an isolated family unit in the country’s western Michoacan state. The government said the cases did not represent a risk to distant commercial farms, nor to human health.
After the April death, Mexican authorities confirmed the presence of the virus and reported the case to the WHO, the agency said.
Mexico’s Health Ministry said there was no evidence of person-to-person transmission in the case and farms near the victim’s home were monitored.
Other people in contact with the person tested negative for bird flu, the health ministry and the WHO said.
Bird flu has infected mammals such as seals, raccoons, bears and cattle, primarily due to contact with infected birds.
Scientists are on alert for changes in the virus that could signal it is adapting to spread more easily among humans.
The United States has reported three cases of H5N1 human infection after exposure to cows since an outbreak was detected in dairy cattle in March. Two had symptoms of conjunctivitis, while the third also had respiratory symptoms.
Although the death in Mexico was not the same strain as the one that is currently infecting cattle in the United States, they are both H5 avian viruses.
Pekosz said that since 1997, H5 viruses have continuously shown a propensity to infect mammals more than any other avian influenza virus.
“So it continues to ring that warning bell that we should be very vigilant about monitoring for these infections, because every spillover is an opportunity for that virus to try to accumulate those mutations that make it better infect humans,” Pekosz said.
Australia reported its first human case of A(H5N1) infection in May, noting there were no signs of transmission. It has however found more poultry cases of H7 bird flu on farms in Victoria state.
Senate GOP blocks bill to protect birth control access
249 ‘zombie’ deer killed in the largest chronic wasting disease outbreak in Texas
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department culled Robert Williams’ entire herd of 249 white-tailed deer. Williams, a captive deer breeder, has battled the disease for more than two years.
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
AD
0:13
SKIP
https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/core/bridge3.644.0_en.html#goog_1476984207
- The Texas Supreme Court ruled eradicating the deer did not violate Robert Williams’ property rights.
It’s been more than three years since the first case of chronic wasting disease popped up on Robert Williams’ ranch in Hunt County.
The veteran rancher of more than 35 years breeds white-tailed deer on the 1,500-acre RW Trophy Ranch in Terrell — which recently saw an end to what state officials described as the largest known CWD outbreak the state of Texas “has ever seen.”
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department culled the remainder of his white-tailed deer herd last week over a duration of eight hours. But for the 85-year-old, that wasn’t his ideal solution.
‘They were cruelly slaughtered’
For almost the same amount of time that Williams has battled the disease’s presence on his ranch, he’s also battled TPWD.
After more deer tested positive for CWD, also called “zombie deer disease,” the state initiated a kill-order which Williams rejected, court papers show.
In early 2022, he sued the state in an attempt to prevent the eradication of the animals he had a permit to breed, records show. He lost the case in court earlier this year as state’s attorneys argued that, under Texas law, the public owns all white-tailed deer in the state, including those held by private breeders.
The lawsuit made its way to the Texas Supreme Court after the Houston 14th Court of Appeals upheld the state’s decision earlier this year. The high court ruled eradicating the deer did not violate Williams’ property rights — ultimately leading to the mass eradication that occurred last week.
During the May 28 event, Williams had only 249 white-tailed deer left — most of which were killed via gunshot.
Get the Think Texas newsletter in your inbox.
Your weekly fix of Texas history, nostalgia, myths and more.
Delivery: VariesYour Email
When CWD was first detected in March 2021, RW Trophy Ranch reported 637 deer in its herd inventory, according to state officials. Of the 352 deer that died in the facility and have been tested for CWD since the initial detection, 254 tested positive with a prevalence rate of 72%, USA TODAY reported.
Williams told Outdoor Life Magazine that he pleaded with officials to run the deer through chutes, similar to the method used for cattle. Instead, they shot the deer as they ran back and forth in their pens, resulting in an eight-hour operation that included processing and disposing of the deer.
“They could have mercifully killed them, and I wouldn’t have felt quite as bad about it,” Williams told Magazine. “But they were cruelly slaughtered, and those deer went crazy. They bounced off the fence, ran into each other and broke each other’s legs. They were just so shot up. That’s what burns me.”
What is chronic wasting disease?
As described by the Centers for Disease Control, chronic wasting disease is a fatal neurological condition exclusive to cervid populations, including deer, elk, and moose.
First identified in a captive deer at a Colorado research facility in 1967, the first wild deer case emerged in 1981.
As of early May, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, it had been detected in deer in 34 states and five Canadian provinces.
What are symptoms of chronic wasting disease?
Chronic wasting disease in animals is termed the “zombie deer disease” as it leads to the following symptoms:
- Lack of coordination
- Weight loss
- Listlessness
- Drooling
- Stumbling
- Lack of fear of people
However, it could also take years for those visible symptoms to manifest, and the disease can only be confirmed through testing.
Can humans contract chronic wasting disease?
There have been no cases of chronic wasting disease in people to date, the CDC says. But it is still investigating the potential risks and advises people not to eat meat from animals that test positive for the disease.
Reported cases steadily increase in Texas
Since Jan. 1 TPWD has confirmed 198 cases, or about 25% of the 795 total cases since 2005, when the disease first arrived to Texas.
There are a number of reasons for increased case numbers, including more awareness, prompting increased sampling rates, as well as deer population growth.
What Texas counties have chronic wasting disease cases?
https://www.usatodaynetworkservice.com/tangstatic/html/naas/sf-q1a2z330306dc3.min.html
The disease has now spread to 30 counties in Texas, though Hunt, Uvalde and Medina counties have accumulated for more than 68% of the state’s total confirmed cases. Hunt leads at 255 cases, which does not include the recent mass culling. Counties include:
- Bexar
- Brooks
- Cherokee
- Coleman
- Dallam
- Duval
- Edwards
- El Paso
- Frisco
- Gillespie
- Gonzales
- Hamilton
- Hartley
- Hudspeth
- Hunt
- Kaufman
- Kimble
- Lavaca
- Limestone
- Lubbock
- Mason
- Matagorda
- Medina
- Oldham
- Real
- Sutton
- Uvalde
- Val Verde
- Washington
- Zavala
Prosecutor to get case on gray wolf shot, killed in Calhoun Co.
In Michigan, it is only legal to kill a wolf if they are a threat to human life.
- NEXT UP IN 5New documentary decades in the making highlights Muskegon legend
- Man charged in death of Hastings tow truck driver who was hit by car, killed
Author: 13 ON YOUR SIDE Staff
Published: 10:48 AM EDT June 5, 2024
Updated: 10:48 AM EDT June 5, 2024
CALHOUN COUNTY, Mich. — Charges could be coming against a hunter who allegedly shot and killed a gray wolf on accident.
Back in January, a hunter killed a gray wolf while legally hunting coyotes in Calhoun County. The hunter claimed that he believed it to be a large coyote at the time, but after the DNR genetically tested the animal, it was found to be a gray wolf.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) said they have completed their investigation into the incident and will be handing it over to the Calhoun County Prosecutor’s Office for review on Friday, June 7.
Hunting wolves is prohibited in Michigan, as wolves fall in the endangered category in the state. It is only legal to kill a wolf if they are a threat to human life.
It is standard practice to investigate possible criminal charges when it comes to the taking of animals listed as federally endangered.
While gray wolf sightings in the Lower Peninsula are rare, they aren’t impossible. The DNR said this is “an unusual case.”
The last time a gray wolf was recorded by the DNR in the Lower Peninsula was back in 2014 when a trail camera set up by the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians captured a wolf.
Exposing the Big Game 