Health Department looks for five local boys who played with bat
Rabies has been confirmed in a bat that youth were seen playing with on Fort Myers Beach pier last Monday.
Since rabies is a fatal disease, the Lee County Health Department is trying to locate the youth in order to administer rabies vaccinations.
At 4 p.m. Monday, June 15, an eyewitness saw at least five boys estimated between the ages of 10-12 handling, playing and kissing a bat at the Fort Myers Beach pier. The eyewitness retrieved the bat and since bats are known to carry rabies, it was sent to the state laboratory in Tampa for testing which confirmed the bat had rabies. The state laboratory identified the bat as a Brazilian Free Trail bat.
“Rabies is a fatal disease,” said Judith A. Hartner, M.D., M.P.H., M.P.A. and Director of the L:ee Counmty Health Departmnent. “There is no known cure for rabies, only vaccination. Therefore, it is critical that the youth who were playing with the bat on the Beach pier are vaccinated as soon as possible.”
For those youth and parents that were visiting the Beach pier last Monday and have information on how to contact the youth seen handling a bat, please contact the Lee County Health Department at 239-332-9501. The phone number will be operational 24 hours per day/7-days per week.
Information is also available at the Florida Department of Health Web site: www.doh.state.fl.us/environment/medicine/rabies/rabies-education.html and at the Centers of Disease Control Web site: www.cdc.gov/RABIES/bats.html or www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dyrd/kidsrabies/.