Mosquito on a plane? Two Frankfurt airport workers die after catching malaria from suspected stowaway insect

Two Frankfurt airport workers have died after contracting malaria from a suspected stowaway mosquito, according to the city's health authority. The airport initially reported that only one employee had died, with six workers infected. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) identified an imported Anopheles mosquito, brought in on an aircraft, as the probable source of the outbreak.

Four other employees are currently hospitalized and receiving treatment. Germany's last instance of airport-based malaria was recorded in 2023. The rarity of the condition can lead to delayed diagnosis, increasing the likelihood of severe symptoms. The remaining five infected workers are also being treated at the hospital. To identify the origin of the mosquitoes, they will be transferred to the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium for genetic testing.

Malaria, caused by parasites spread through Anopheles mosquitoes, can lead to symptoms such as nausea, headache, and severe waves of fever and chills. The disease claims hundreds of thousands of lives annually, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. Effective treatments are available, and patients diagnosed early typically recover fully.