Fear of plague in quake-hit Qinghai

Hibernating marmots carrying fatal virus might wake up early

BEIJING - In the aftermath of the earthquake in Yushu, Qinghai province, health experts have sounded a warning of a possible outbreak of diseases, especially the fatal pneumonic plague.

Given that Qinghai has seen a sporadic rise in cases of the pneumonic plague in recent years, surveillance over the epidemic, which is passed on to humans by marmots, a type of ground squirrel indigenous to the region, has been strengthened to work out and implement effective measures to avert potential outbreaks.