Hikers on trail near Los Angeles sickened by norovirus
by Brad Matthews · The Washington TimesSeveral people who hiked a section of the Pacific Crest Trail near Los Angeles came down sick with a gastrointestinal problem, according to a nonprofit dedicated to the trail.
The Pacific Crest Trail Association said on social media that it was “aware of reports of gastrointestinal illness” in the part of the trail near Wrightwood, California, 40 miles northeast of Los Angeles.
The specific illness is norovirus, according to the New York Post.
The nonprofit said on social media that it is working with the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health on the issue.
But county health officials told SFGATE that the agency “does not have evidence of a confirmed increase or cluster of norovirus cases in the Wrightwood area beyond what would typically be expected.”
Ron Hals, a hiker who fell ill with norovirus, told SFGATE that after setting up his camp in the Wrightwood area, he became sick.
“I’ve never been that weak. When I finally managed to fall asleep the next morning, I didn’t even take my shoes off or cover myself with a blanket,” Mr. Hals told SFGATE.
On its website, the Pacific Crest Trail Association recommended that hikers frequently wash their hands and boil or chemically treat water if necessary, with water containers at caches along the trail and doorknobs at hotels being common vectors for the spread of norovirus.
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Posters on a Reddit group dedicated to the trail alleged that there were seven to 12 cases confirmed around Wrightwood, and that hikers were seen vomiting and using holes to defecate near a water cache.
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