A campground at Natural Bridges National Monument was closed after a detection of bubonic plague among rodents.
About 40 miles outside of Blanding, park rangers noticed several dead field mice at Natural Bridges. Upon testing the specimens at the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in Fort Collins, Colo., they discovered that the mice died from the plague.
While the Associated Press reported that the plague was detected among field mice and chipmunks, Maureen Bigelow, a six-year park volunteer, said no chipmunks were involved. She said a park ranger and a camper discovered the three dead field mice in a 13-site campground.
Due to the unusual occurrence, the mice carcasses were "sent off for testing - a procedure to ensure the safety of the people," Bigelow said.
Plans to decontaminate the area include utilizing insecticides around the camp area. This will kill the flea carriers that commonly spread the plague from rodents to humans.
The campgrounds could be reopened as soon as next week; however, an official date has not been released.
"We will test the rodent burrows for presence of fleas," said Paul Henderson, a Utah national park spokesman. "We do tend to be perhaps a little more cautious than we need to be, but we would rather err on the side of caution. It will be a joint call between the CDC, National Parks Service and the Public Health Service."
Henderson said they would be taking extra precautions because they are located in the Four Corners area.
"[The] Four Corners area is the most common spot that the plague occurs than anywhere else in the continental U.S.," said Henderson, who cited statistics published by the CDC.
Bubonic plague cases have also been detected in rodent populations at Mesa Verde National Park and Colorado National Monument. However, there has never been a reported human case originating from any national park or monument, according to national park officials.
Despite the outbreaks this season, officials do not believe it will cause significant problems to tourism or other nearby parks. While Utah does have a state park territory near the area, there is no camping allowed at that location and the plague is unlikely to affect state park campers.
"At this time there is no impact [on the Utah State parks] and we do not foresee any negative impact forthcoming in the future," said Hollie Brown, public affairs specialist for Utah State Parks and Recreation.
Copyright Brigham Young University 17 May 2006
