Virus From Rodent Droppings Suspected in Death of Utah Man
Friday, September 12, 2008 |
FoxNews.com
SALT LAKE CITY — A Duchesne County man died of hantavirus, the first confirmed case in Utah since 2004.
Public health authorities say the 28-year-old man died Sept. 3, a day after he checked into a hospital.
People typically get infected while sweeping up rodent droppings without a mask, and the Utah Department of Health attributed the man's death to that activity.
But a local health official said that fact had yet to be determined.
TriCounty Health Department spokeswoman Jeramie Tubbs said investigators were still trying to determine what the man was doing when he got infected.
Tubbs didn't know if the man was able to offer any information before dying
