In the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia, a city is on high alert, reports CNN. On Tuesday, they confirmed a case of a disease that has persisted centuries after it caused the most deadly pandemic in human history – the bubonic plague.
The case was first discovered in the city of Bayannur, located northwest of Beijing, according to state-run Xinhua news agency. A hospital alerted municipal authorities of the suspected case on Saturday. By Sunday, local authorities had issued a citywide Level 3 warning for plague prevention, the second lowest in a four-level system.
The warning will stay in place until the end of the year, according to Xinhua.
The case was confirmed and officially diagnosed by doctors on Tuesday. The patient is being isolated and treated in hospital, and is in stable condition, Xinhua reported.
Plague, caused by bacteria and transmitted through flea bites and infected animals, killed an estimated 50 million people in Europe during the Black Death pandemic in the Middle Ages. Modern antibiotics can prevent complications and death if administered quickly enough.
