Two German airport workers die of malaria from mosquito on plane

Two German airport workers who contracted malaria from a mosquito believed to have arrived on a plane have tragically died, the city's health authority announced on Wednesday. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported that airport officials initially stated one employee had passed away, with six others infected. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) identified an imported Anopheles mosquito, brought over by an aircraft, as the likely source of the outbreak.

Four additional employees are currently receiving hospital treatment. Germany last experienced an airport-based malaria outbreak in 2023, according to the RKI. The rarity of the condition can lead to delayed diagnosis, thus increasing the likelihood of severe symptoms. The Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium, has agreed to examine the malaria parasites in the patients' blood samples.

Malaria, transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes, causes symptoms such as nausea, headache, and intense waves of fever and chills. The disease results in hundreds of thousands of deaths annually, predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa. Effective treatments are available, and early diagnosis typically leads to complete recovery.