this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2025
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A person in northern Arizona has died from a case of pneumonic plague, local health officials said.

The unidentified patient, from Coconino County, showed up to the Flagstaff Medical Center Emergency Department and died there the same day, Northern Arizona Healthcare said in a statement. It is unclear when the death occurred.

The hospital noted that "appropriate initial management" and "attempts to provide life-saving resuscitation" was performed, but "the patient did not recover."

Rapid diagnostic testing led to a presumptive diagnosis of Yersinia pestis.

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 2 days ago

Just take vitamin-c and ivermectin.

/s

[–] [email protected] 21 points 2 days ago (2 children)

In case people didn't know, we usually have a handful of cases of the plague every year. This isn't news.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

If it's a handful then each one is at least moderately news worthy in normal times

With the new brain worm onncharge of healthcare timea that we're in, I see this as a screaming emergency news

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago

The Bubonic plague is easily treated with a round of antibiotics. Very rarely does someone die. This person waited too long.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago

Judging by these comments, people clearly didn't know.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 2 days ago (3 children)

This is certainly not a harbinger of any kind

[–] [email protected] 23 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Between one and two thousand cases of the plague are reported globally every year. Being in Arizona, they may have gotten it from being in contact with black-tailed prairie dogs.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago

Well thats good at least, another commenter mentioned this guy must have been sitting on it for weeks to die the same day he got admitted. We can breathe for a few more weeks.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Plague is pretty easily treated with antibiotics if caught in time. The fact this dude died the same day as he went to the hospital, I’d wager he waited too long to seek medical treatment.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Sadly an all too common habit in the states

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Tough call when you have to show up to work until they finally decide to send you home, and even then a single visit to the ER can easily bankrupt you. 🥲

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Americans want it that way.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Oh? What's your survey pool, doc?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Only a hundred million or so cowards who continue to bend over and take it

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

You got a plan, oh distant, undervalued genius? Bring it on over. 🤌🏼 Most of us'd be more than happy to throw the crank on a guillotine for liberty. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Sounds about on brand for Americans. Before you’ll lift a finger to help yourselves you’ll get belligerent and take out your insecurity on the people who have been telling you this was going to happen for decades.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Ah, a troll, then. Gotcha. My bad. Bye, dumbass.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago

Cool, when they’re loading you into an unmarked van and you realize you did literally nothing to prevent it, you can comfort yourself with the fact that at least you got really defensive on the Internet.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 2 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago

"Hey MAGA, looks to me like you're on the wrong side of the riverrrrr!"

[–] [email protected] 17 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Stop playing with Prairie Dogs, people!!!! They may be friend shaped, but they carry they plague!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 days ago
[–] [email protected] 12 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Ah fuck didn't have that on my 2025 card

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 days ago

Same here but in hindsight it seems like an obvious oversight.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 days ago

cabininthewoods.jpg

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Why didn't they seek help at the onset of the illness? They wait for the miraculous cure from modern medicine. Just like that old man that died from rabies.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Pneumonic plague is a particularly aggressive form of the plague, where you basically need to be treated within the first 24 hours of showing symptoms in order to have much chance of surviving, and you can die in as little as a day and a half. Initial symptoms include fever, weakness, nausea and headaches, aka the same symptoms as probably >90% of the illnesses most of us contract, so I can see how it would be easy to underestimate the severity of it, until you start coughing up blood.

Further, while I don't know this person's circumstances, in a country where there's no guarantee of either universal healthcare or paid sick time and protections for workers who call off work when ill, I can easily see how someone might say "Eh, it's just a cold, but I'll tough it out, because I can't afford to go to the doctor and/or miss work," when they notice some of the milder and less remarkable symptoms, then wake up the next day coughing up blood and already be screwed.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

There are accounts from the Black Death saying some person was fine in the morning and dead by sundown in the street after coughing up blood.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

FWIW, everyone dies from rabies once they contract it.

edit: my bad, there's been ~10 survivors since 2016... out of the 59,000 infections per year, globally.