Foreign Affairs

Chinese Herdsman Diagnosed With Bubonic Plague

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A herdsman was diagnosed with the bubonic plague on Sunday in the northern Chinese city of Bayannur, according to health officials.

The man is in stable condition, but remains in isolation at a local hospital, according to the Bayannur City Health Commission. Officials issued the second lowest level of alert in response to the incident, warning people against hunting animals, especially marmots, which are likely to carry deadly diseases, The New York Times reported.

“Maintain good personal hygiene habits, try to avoid going to crowded places, go to a medical institution for treatment, or wear a mask,” the Bayannur City Health Commission advised in a statement.

The bubonic plague ravaged Europe in the 14th century, killing 20 million people or a third of the continent’s population, according to the History Channel. The disease, which cannot be spread from person to person, has largely disappeared, but still claims the lives of more than a hundred people worldwide every year, according to the World Health Organization.

The bubonic plague case comes as the coronavirus, which originated in China, continues to spread in the United States and worldwide. President Donald Trump declared a national emergency in March to combat the pandemic, The New York Times reported.

However, the U.S. has experienced a recent surge in daily cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been more than 50,000 new cases every day since last Wednesday.

Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas issued a statewide face covering mandate Thursday as the number of cases in the state continues to increase, according to the Texas Tribune. California issued a similar order in June, but Arizona and Florida, who are also experiencing a large uptick in cases, have yet to do so.

Trump has shied away from ordering a national face mask mandate.

“I don’t know if you need mandatory, because you have many places in the country where people stay very long distance,” Trump said in a Fox Business interview Wednesday. “But I’m all for masks.”