A person with measles recently traveled through a North Carolina airport and to south and central Virginia in early December while they were contagious, public health officials said Wednesday.
The person visited a Home Depot in South Hill, Virginia, on Dec. 5, a cafe in Kenbridge on Dec. 6 as well as the Lynchburg Livestock Market and a nearby McDonald’s in Rustburg on Dec. 8, according to the Virginia health department, which is warning people of potential exposures.
The person lives in the United States, but is not a resident of Virginia or North Carolina and was not an international traveler, public health officials said. They are no longer in Virginia, a health department spokeswoman said.
The person also traveled through the Raleigh-Durham International Airport early on Dec. 10, but North Carolina public health officials say they know of no health risk at the airport.
“Vaccination remains the best protection against measles,” Virginia State Epidemiologist Laurie Forlano said in a statement. “This latest exposure is a good reminder to check your vaccination status, especially before holiday travel.”
Epidemiologists are investigating outbreaks of measles in South Carolina as well as West Texas and Utah and Arizona, many of which have been linked to unvaccinated people or people whose vaccination status is unknown.
Nationally, the CDC has recorded at least 1,934 cases of measles — a highly contagious and potentially deadly virus — across dozens states as of Wednesday. More than half of them occurred among children.
Most people in Virginia have immunity to measles through vaccination, so the risk to the general public is low, public health officials said. However, they are trying to identify people who may have come into contact with the virus at the following locations:
- The Home Depot, at 250 Frank D. Harris Drive in South Hill, Dec. 5 from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
- Wagon Wheel Cafe, at 408 Main St. in Kenbridge, on Dec. 6 from 9:15 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Lynchburg Livestock Market, at 243 Livestock Road in Rustburg on Dec. 8 from 3:15 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- McDonald’s, at 11059 Wards Road in Rustburg on Dec. 8 from 4:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
The most likely time a person exposed to the virus could develop symptoms is between Dec. 12 and Dec. 29, Virginia officials said.
Symptoms could develop up to 21 days after the potential exposure, and monitoring for symptoms is especially important for people who are not fully vaccinated or otherwise immune to measles.
Anyone who might have been exposed and is considered to be at risk of developing measles should contact their health care provider promptly to discuss any questions or concerns, Virginia health officials said.
In the first stage of measles symptoms, most people have a fever of greater than 101 degrees, runny nose, watery red eyes and a cough, which usually start seven to 14 days after exposure. The second stage starts three to five days after symptoms start, when a rash begins to appear on the face and spreads to the rest of the body. People with measles are contagious from four days before the rash appears through four days after the rash appeared.
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