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The Independent
2 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Bid to track tourist amid fears hundreds could have been exposed to rabies at bat-infested cabins
Health officials are currently engaged in a significant effort to alert hundreds of people across dozens of US states and several countries, following potential exposure to rabies from bats in cabins at Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park over recent months. The widespread alert stems from concerns over bat presence within eight linked cabins at Jackson Lake Lodge. Despite the extensive outreach, as of Friday, none of the bats recovered from these specific cabins and subsequently tested have returned positive results for rabies. However, Dr. Alexia Harrist, Wyoming State Health Officer, has cautioned that the limited number of dead bats found and dispatched to the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory in Laramie for analysis likely represents "only a small sample of the likely dozens that colonized the attic above the row of cabins." She further explained that many other bats were not killed but were simply ushered out through cabin doors and windows, while the vast majority never descended from the attic into the living areas below. Health officials thus deemed it better safe than sorry to alert everybody who has stayed in the cabins recently that they might have been exposed by being bitten or scratched. Especially when people are sleeping, a bat bite or scratch can go unseen and unnoticed. 'What we're really concerned about is people who saw bats in their rooms and people who might have had direct contact with a bat,' Harrist said Friday. The cabins have been unoccupied, with no plans to reopen, since concessionaire Grand Teton Lodge Company discovered the bat problem July 27. Bats are a frequent vector of the rabies virus. Once symptoms occur — muscle aches, vomiting, itching, to name a few — rabies is almost always fatal in humans. The good news is a five-shot prophylactic regimen over a two-week period soon after exposure is highly effective in preventing illness, Harrist noted. The cabins opened for the summer season in May after being vacant over the winter. Based on the roughly 250 reservations through late July, health officials estimated that up to 500 people had stayed in the cabins. They were trying to reach people in 38 states and seven countries through those states' health agencies and, in the case of foreign visitors, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Others who have not been alerted yet but stayed in cabins 516, 518, 520, 522, 524, 526, 528 and 530 this year should tell health officials or a doctor immediately, Harrist said. Health officials were recommending prophylactic shots for people who fit certain criteria, such as deep sleepers who found a bat in their room, and children too young to say that they had seen a bat. The Wyoming Department of Health had no ongoing concern about visitor safety at the Jackson Lake Lodge area. That includes a Federal Reserve economic policy symposium Aug. 21-23 that takes place at Jackson Lake Lodge every summer. 'The lodge company has done a fantastic job of doing their due diligence of making sure everyone that is coming in for that, and for all other visits this year, are going to be as safe as possible,' said Emily Curren, Wyoming's public health veterinarian. 'Three or four' dead bats from the cabins tested negative and one that was mangled did not have enough brain tissue to be testable, Curren said. All were brown bats, which come in two species: 'little' and 'big,' with the larger ones more than twice as big. Officials were unsure which species these were, but both are common in Wyoming. They typically live in colonies of 30 to 100 individuals, Curren said. 'That's a lot of bats that we cannot rule out a risk of rabies being in,' Curren said. 'There's no way for us to know for certain about every single bat that got into these rooms.' There are no plans to exterminate the bats, Grand Teton National Park spokesperson Emily Davis said. Devices fitted to the building were keeping the bats from getting back in after flying out in pursuit of insects to eat, they said.
Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Health
- Toronto Sun
Hundreds may have been exposed to rabies at bat-infested cabins in Grand Teton National Park
Published Aug 15, 2025 • 3 minute read Visitors watch the morning sun illuminate the Grand Tetons from within the Great Room at the Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming on Aug. 28, 2016. Photo by Brennan Linsley / The Associated Press File Health officials are working to alert hundreds of people in dozens of states and several countries who may have been exposed to rabies in bat-infested cabins in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park over the past few months. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account As of Friday, none of the bats found in some of the eight linked cabins at Jackson Lake Lodge had tested positive for rabies. But the handful of dead bats found and sent to the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory in Laramie for testing were probably only a small sample of the likely dozens that colonized the attic above the row of cabins, Wyoming State Health Officer Dr. Alexia Harrist said. Other bats weren't killed but got shooed out through cabin doors and windows. Meanwhile, the vast majority never flapped down from the attic into living spaces. Health officials thus deemed it better safe than sorry to alert everybody who has stayed in the cabins recently that they might have been exposed by being bitten or scratched. Especially when people are sleeping, a bat bite or scratch can go unseen and unnoticed. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'What we're really concerned about is people who saw bats in their rooms and people who might have had direct contact with a bat,' Harrist said Friday. The cabins have been unoccupied, with no plans to reopen, since concessionaire Grand Teton Lodge Company discovered the bat problem July 27. Bats are a frequent vector of the rabies virus. Once symptoms occur — muscle aches, vomiting, itching, to name a few _ rabies is almost always fatal in humans. The good news is a five-shot prophylactic regimen over a two-week period soon after exposure is highly effective in preventing illness, Harrist noted. SEASONAL CABINS OPENED IN MAY The cabins opened for the summer season in May after being vacant over the winter. Based on the roughly 250 reservations through late July, health officials estimated that up to 500 people had stayed in the cabins. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. They were trying to reach people in 38 states and seven countries through those states' health agencies and, in the case of foreign visitors, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Others who have not been alerted yet but stayed in cabins 516, 518, 520, 522, 524, 526, 528 and 530 this year should tell health officials or a doctor immediately, Harrist said. Health officials were recommending prophylactic shots for people who fit certain criteria, such as deep sleepers who found a bat in their room, and children too young to say that they had seen a bat. The Wyoming Department of Health had no ongoing concern about visitor safety at the Jackson Lake Lodge area. That includes a Federal Reserve economic policy symposium Aug. 21-23 that takes place at Jackson Lake Lodge every summer. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'The lodge company has done a fantastic job of doing their due diligence of making sure everyone that is coming in for that, and for all other visits this year, are going to be as safe as possible,' said Emily Curren, Wyoming's public health veterinarian. 'Three or four' dead bats from the cabins tested negative and one that was mangled did not have enough brain tissue to be testable, Curren said. All were brown bats, which come in two species: 'little' and 'big,' with the larger ones more than twice as big. Officials were unsure which species these were, but both are common in Wyoming. They typically live in colonies of 30 to 100 individuals, Curren said. 'That's a lot of bats that we cannot rule out a risk of rabies being in,' Curren said. 'There's no way for us to know for certain about every single bat that got into these rooms.' There are no plans to exterminate the bats, Grand Teton National Park spokesperson Emily Davis said. Devices fitted to the building were keeping the bats from getting back in after flying out in pursuit of insects to eat, they said. RECOMMENDED VIDEO Columnists Toronto & GTA Music Ontario Golf
