Third person dies of bird flu since virus started jumping to livestock

A person in Washington state has died from bird flu after exposure at an infected dairy farm, state health officials reported Sunday. It marks the third human bird flu death in the US since a strain of highly pathogenic (H5) avian influenza (HPAI) made the unprecedented jump from wild, migratory birds to dairy cows, which was first reported in the US in March 2024.

华盛顿州卫生官员周日报告称，该州一名曾接触过受感染奶牛场的人员死于禽流感。这是自高致病性禽流感（H5）病毒从野生候鸟传播至奶牛（2024年3月在美国首次报告）以来，美国发生的第三例人类禽流感死亡病例。

The person who died was a Yakima County resident and was said to have had underlying health conditions, which could have made the person more vulnerable to the infection. On Friday, county officials reported that the person was severely ill and hospitalized. In the subsequent announcement of the person’s death, officials said they would not be releasing further information about the person, including their name, gender, or age, out of respect for the family’s privacy.

死者为雅基马县居民，据称患有基础疾病，这可能使其更容易受到感染。周五，县官员报告称该患者病情严重并已住院。在随后宣布其死亡的公告中，官员们表示，出于对家属隐私的尊重，不会公布有关该人员的更多信息，包括姓名、性别或年龄。

“Our hearts go out to the individual’s family and loved ones during this difficult time,” Dave Atteberry, health officer for the Yakima Health District, said in a statement. “Avian influenza can cause severe illness, particularly among people who have underlying health conditions. While this is a serious and heartbreaking outcome, the risk to the general public remains low.”

雅基马卫生区卫生官员戴夫·阿特伯里（Dave Atteberry）在一份声明中表示：“在这个困难时刻，我们向死者的家人和亲友表示慰问。禽流感可能导致严重疾病，尤其是对于患有基础疾病的人群。虽然这是一个严重且令人心碎的结果，但对普通公众的风险仍然很低。”

In all, three people have tested positive for bird flu in Washington since the virus was reported in dairy cattle in the state on October 8. All three have been in Yakima County. While announcing the death on Sunday, officials also reported the third case. That case, like the first case, was in a person who had exposure to an infected dairy herd in the county. Both people have reportedly not experienced severe illness nor been hospitalized.

自10月8日华盛顿州报告奶牛感染禽流感病毒以来，该州共有三人禽流感检测呈阳性。这三例病例均发生在雅基马县。在周日宣布死亡病例的同时，官员们还报告了第三例病例。与第一例病例一样，该患者也曾接触过该县受感染的奶牛群。据报道，这两名患者均未出现严重症状，也未住院治疗。

Since the October 8 report of infected herds, Washington state has had 40 detections of bird flu in dairy cows, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Most of those have been in Yakima County, which has reported detections in 33 herds. This year, the USDA has reported 134 cases of bird flu in cattle, including cases in Texas, Washington, Idaho, Utah, and Kansas. The USDA lists no other reports of cases in other domestic livestock, including swine.

根据美国农业部的数据，自10月8日报告牛群感染以来，华盛顿州已在奶牛中检测出40例禽流感。其中大部分发生在雅基马县，该县已报告了33个牛群的感染情况。今年，美国农业部已报告了134例牛禽流感病例，涉及德克萨斯州、华盛顿州、爱达荷州、犹他州和堪萨斯州。美国农业部未列出其他家畜（包括猪）的感染报告。

But the virus has continued to spread in other wild and captive mammals. A report last month from ProPublica revealed that the virus is raging on a mink farm in Utah. The report raised alarm because mink is a species that could give the virus opportunities to mutate to better spread among humans.

但该病毒已在其他野生和圈养哺乳动物中持续传播。ProPublica上个月的一份报告显示，该病毒正在犹他州的一个水貂养殖场肆虐。这份报告引起了警惕，因为水貂这一物种可能为病毒提供变异机会，从而使其更容易在人类中传播。

To date, no human-to-human transmission of HPAI has been reported from the over 70 human cases detected since 2024. Of the cases, only three have resulted in death. The first death was in a 65-year-old Louisiana resident with underlying health conditions, who became critically ill in January 2025 after exposure to infected wild and backyard birds. The second death, in November 2025, was reported by Washington state officials as an older adult with underlying health conditions who also had exposure to infected backyard birds.

迄今为止，自2024年以来检测到的70多例人类病例中，尚未报告有人际传播高致病性禽流感的情况。在这些病例中，仅有三例导致死亡。第一例死亡病例是一名患有基础疾病的65岁路易斯安那州居民，他在2025年1月接触受感染的野生鸟类和后院家禽后病情危重。第二例死亡病例发生在2025年11月，据华盛顿州官员报告，死者为一名患有基础疾病的老年人，也曾接触过受感染的后院家禽。