Overview

• The July fatality in Coconino County is the first U.S. bubonic plague death in 2025 and Arizona’s first since 2007.
• Health authorities are investigating how the resident contracted Yersinia pestis while respecting the family’s request for privacy.
• Bubonic plague is a severe bacterial infection spread mainly by flea bites from infected wild rodents.
• Human-to-human transmission of bubonic plague is extremely rare and has not been documented in the U.S. since 1924.
• Officials emphasize that proactive rodent control, sanitation, and rapid antibiotic treatment protocols are vital to prevent further cases.