YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (KMPH) -
A third person has died from a rodent-borne disease linked to Yosemite National Park, the park said in a news release Thursday afternoon.
The National Park Service has received confirmations from health agencies that eight people who stayed one night or more in Yosemite since June have contracted hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, park spokeswoman Kari Cobb said.
Three of those people -- an Alameda County man, a Pennsylvania man and now a West Virginia resident -- have died from the disease. Five people from California continue to recover after visiting the park.
Seven of the eight cases of hantavirus have been linked to "signature tent cabins" in Yosemite's Curry Village, Cobb said.
The CDC says as many as 10,000 people who stayed in those cabins might have been exposed to the virus. The cabins have since been locked up, and are out of service indefinitely.
Park officials say only those who come in contact with infected deer mice, or their droppings or urine, are at risk for becoming sick with hantavirus.
Symptoms include fever, chills, headache, and cough.
If you think you were exposed, or have questions about hantavirus, you can call the park's hotline, at (209) 372-0822.
Stay with KMPH News and KMPH.com as we continue to follow this story.
