Frankfurt Airport Workers Die After Malaria Infection
An unusual cluster of malaria cases at Frankfurt Airport, Germany, infected six employees, two fatally.
At least two Frankfurt Airport employees have died from malaria after being infected by mosquitos that may have been brought into Germany on an aircraft, according to health officials. This marks the first known outbreak of "airport malaria" in Germany, with six employees infected despite not having traveled to a malaria-risk country.
The first fatality occurred in July, followed by another in August. The other four infected employees are currently recovering. Health authorities confirmed the latest death on Wednesday, expressing their deepest sympathy to the employee's relatives. The infections are believed to have been transmitted by an infected Anopheles mosquito that was likely imported by aircraft.
Airport malaria is a rare occurrence where an infected mosquito transported on an aircraft or in luggage infects someone on the plane, at the airport, or in the surrounding area. Mosquito traps have been installed at the airport to monitor the situation, but health officials emphasize that the risk to the Frankfurt population remains negligible.
Written by urgent.news from Tempo.co English's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
