TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A man in his 40s is recovering after a suspected hantavirus infection that health officials believe may be linked to a rat bite at his workplace in Keelung, CNA reported Tuesday.
Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said the man is not a Keelung resident but works in the city. Hsieh said another local government notified Keelung officials about the suspected case on Monday afternoon.
Hsieh said the suspected infection occurred in Keelung, and the city government would carry out cleaning, disinfection, and rodent control work. He said residents who need help can call the 1999 citizen hotline.
Keelung City Health Bureau Director Chang Hsien-cheng (張賢政) said the man worked in a basement area near a parking lot at his workplace, per UDN. Chang said the man was not employed as a cleaner, but his duties sometimes included cleaning work.
Chang said the man found a rat while cleaning and was bitten while trying to remove it. Workplace staff caught the rat soon after and followed procedures to clean and disinfect the area.
Chang said the man was bitten on April 7 and became ill on May 2. He developed a fever, mild chills, poor appetite, and weakness, but his symptoms were mild, Liberty Times reported.
Chang said the time between the bite and the illness matched the usual incubation period for hantavirus infection. Doctors outside Keelung suspected the infection and reported the case to health authorities on May 7 and 8.
“The man is recovering well and is expected to leave the hospital in the next one or two days,” Chang said. Health officials have checked people who had contact with him at work and at home.
“None of the contacts have shown related symptoms,” Chang said. He said the city would keep monitoring them to make sure there is no sign of further spread.
Chang said current data shows the strain of hantavirus in Taiwan does not spread from person to person. He said people can become infected mainly through rat bites or contact with rat droppings and urine.
Health officials told residents not to catch rats with their bare hands. They said people who find rat droppings should spray the area with a diluted bleach solution of one part bleach to nine parts water, let it soak for five minutes, and then clean it.
Keelung Environmental Protection Bureau Director Ma Chung-hao (馬仲豪) said the bureau has stepped up ditch-cleaning work on main roads since March, per CTS News. He said workers have cleaned more than 500 kilometers of ditches and removed nearly 600 tonnes of waste.
Ma said the city will continue wider cleaning and disinfection work. He said officials will mainly use physical control methods, such as traps, and use chemical control as a supporting measure.
