Coconino County, Arizona officials are taking much needed precautions after finding of all things fleas collected in Picture Canyon northeast of Flagstaff. The insects have tested positive for the freaking plague. Apocalypse incoming…
The Arizona Daily Sun reported Friday that the County Public Health Services District is still conducting in depth additional tests and disinfecting the poor prairie dog burrows in an attempt to stop the spread.
Public health officials collected the fleas around trails in the popular hiking area after noticing some prairie dogs dying off and the positive test is the first sign of plague activity in the county since last September. The last detected plague was in Doney Park and scared the crap out of a lot of residents. Us, too.
Officials are publicly advising residents to take the necessary precautions like using insect repellent, and obviously to avoid handling sick or dead animals. Seriously, should they have to include that last part? Symptoms of plague appear within two to six days after initial exposure. They can include fever, chills, swollen lymph glands and muscle pain.
I had the plague vaccine in the Marine Corps while stationed at 29 Palms in California. Just the vaccine took me down for two days and it was pretty brutal. Catching the plague full on would be assuredly a physical nightmare and quiet praying that one would recover quickly. This isn’t the first time old diseases have tried to pop back in to society and it will surely not be the last.