Thailand reports anthrax death
BANGKOK—Thailand has reported its first anthrax-related death in decades with two infections nationwide, prompting a public health alert after authorities identified hundreds potentially exposed to the deadly bacteria, officials said on Thursday.
A 53-year-old man in Mukdahan province, in northeastern Thailand near the border with Laos, died on Wednesday after contracting anthrax, the government said, with a second case confirmed in the same province and three additional suspected cases under investigation.
Authorities have identified at least 638 people as being potentially exposed after eating raw meat. Among them, 36 had participated in butchering livestock while the rest had consumed raw or undercooked beef, health officials said. All are receiving antibiotics as part of containment measures.
Cattle vaccinations
“All individuals who may have been in contact with infected meat are being monitored,” the health ministry said.
The Livestock Department is overseeing containment efforts in the affected area, including a 5-kilometer quarantine zone around the infection site, the agriculture ministry said.
There are plans to vaccinate 1,222 cattle, though no animals have shown signs of illness or unexplained death, it added.
