Floods and warm weather perfect storm for Japanese encephalitis outbreak in Australia, researchers warn

Modellers say those within 4km of an infected piggery potentially vulnerable, meaning 740,546 people at risk of mosquito-borne virusFollow our Australia news live blog for the latest updatesGet ourmorning andafternoon news emails,free app ordaily news podcastWarming temperatures combined with flood waters could leave almost 750,000 Australians vulnerable to Japanese encephalitis – a disease that until last year was confined to Asia and far-northern Australia.The mosquito-borne disease was first detected on the Australian mainland in 1998, but itsrange expanded dramatically earlier this year. Cases were reported indozens of southern piggeries (pigs are one of the main carriers of the virus) and there were also 31 confirmed cases in humans and six deaths.Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morningContinue reading...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Health Infectious diseases Australia news Flooding Extreme weather Medical research Environment Climate crisis Australia weather La Ni ña Insects Source Type: news