Get you up to speed: Two airport workers in Frankfurt die after being bitten by ‘mosquito on a plane’ | News World
Two airport workers have died from malaria at Frankfurt Airport in Germany, where a total of six workers contracted the illness. German health officials believe the malaria infections resulted from mosquitoes brought on a plane, prompting the setup of traps around the airport.
Traps have been established throughout Frankfurt Airport as health officials investigate the transmission source of the malaria outbreak among workers. Blood tests are pending to determine if the infections were caused by one or multiple mosquitoes during the outbreak first identified in mid-July.
German health officials are investigating the recent outbreak of malaria at Frankfurt Airport, where two airport workers have died and six have fallen ill, with the Robert Koch Institute indicating that infected mosquitoes likely arrived via an aircraft. In response, traps have been set up around the airport, and staff members have been advised to monitor for symptoms as blood tests are planned to determine the source of the infections.
What remains unclear — It is not known how the malaria-carrying mosquitoes entered the plane that brought them to Frankfurt Airport.
Two Frankfurt Airport workers die from malaria linked to plane mosquitoes
Traps have been set up inside Frankfurt Airport after six workers fell ill with malaria (Picture: Getty Images)
Two airport workers have died from malaria in Germany thought to be from mosquitoes brought on a plane.
A total of six workers at Frankfurt Airport contracted the illness in the mystery outbreak despite not having travelled to a malaria hotspot.
German health officials believe the bugs landed at the country’s busiest airport inside a plane.
The outbreak of the tropical disease was first spotted in mid-July, and the first death was reported the same month.
The second death occurred this month, and it was confirmed today.
Germany’s public health body, the Robert Koch Institute, said the infections were likely transmitted by an infected anopheles mosquito on an aircraft.
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Traps have been set up around the airport, which saw around 63.2 million passengers last year.
Airport staff have been told about the infections and they have been advised to keep an eye on any possible symptoms.
The six infected male workers are said to have worked in different areas of the airport, BBC News reports.
Blood tests are expected to reveal whether they were targeted by one mosquito or six different ones.
Germany has not had native cases of malaria since the 1950s, the Robert Koch Institute says.
Airport malaria occurs when the mosquito has travelled on a plane, such as inside a suitcase, and bites a person or people on the aircraft or at the airport.
The previous case of airport malaria happened at Frankfurt in 2023, Deutsche Welle reports.
What is malaria?
Even one bite from a female anopheles mosquito can be enough to transfer the malaria parasite into the bloodstream (Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
Malaria can be treated if it is spotted early, but it continues to kill hundreds of thousands of people, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The disease is spread by infected female anopheles mosquitoes, and just one bite is enough to infect the human body with the parasite.
Symptoms include a high temperature, feeling hot, cold or shivery, sweating, headaches, confusion, muscle pain, yellow whites of the eyes and a sore throat.
Infected patients, especially children, are likely to feel extremely tired and sleepy.
The symptoms usually show between seven and 18 days after the mosquito’s bite.
The UK records imported cases of malaria each year, with around 2,106 cases associated with travel reported in 2023.
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