Washington, DC, health officials confirm measles case ahead of cherry blossom season
WASHINGTON, D.C. ‒ Local officials warned on Tuesday that a person with a confirmed case of measles may have exposed others at the city’s Union Station and a local urgent care.
The case comes as the capital region is gearing up for its signature cherry blossom season, which attracts millions of people each year. In 2024, 1.6 million visitors visited Washington and its surrounding areas for cherry blossom season, according to National Cherry Blossom Festival organizers and Mayor Muriel Bowser's office. The famed blossoms are expected to reach their peak bloom – and peak tourism draw – this weekend.
The person who contracted measles traveled on Amtrak’s Northeast Regional route heading southbound on March 19. Washington’s Department of Health said potential exposure could have occurred between 7:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. The individual exited through Union Station, with potential exposures between 11:00 p.m. and 1:30 a.m.
The northeast regional route begins in Boston and ends or runs through Washington, including stops in New York City, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Officials did not immediately say where the individual boarded the train.
The person went to an urgent care center in the city’s northwestern Adams Morgan neighborhood on Saturday, and officials warn that potential exposures could have extended from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
“Measles is a highly contagious illness that can spread easily through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes,” Washington’s Department of Health said in the Tuesday statement.
City health officials said people who may have been exposed and have not been immunized against the virus should contact their health care provider or health officials at 844-493-2652.
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show 378 people in 18 states have been diagnosed with measles this year. Outbreaks have occurred primarily in the South Plains and Panhandle regions of Texas and neighboring Lea County, New Mexico.
Who is most at risk of measles?
People who have received two measles vaccine shots, previously had measles, or were born in the U.S. before 1957 are believed to be immune to the virus.
People in the U.S. traditionally receive the measles vaccination around their first birthday.
Pregnant women, infants under the age of one and those who are immune compromised are most at risk of complications from measles.
Measles symptoms
Measles symptoms often develop within 10-14 days of exposure to the virus but may take as long as 21 days to show up.
A person with measles is contagious four days before they begin to show signs of a rash and four days after the rash begins.
Here are common symptoms of the virus:
- Fever of more than 101 degrees.
- Runny nose.
- Cough.
- Red, watery eyes.
- Loss of appetite, diarrhea.
- A red rash on the face and body typically appears one to four days after early symptoms.
- Koplik spots, tiny white spots that may appear inside the mouth two to three days after symptoms begin.
Contributing: Mary Walrath-Holdridge, Nathan Diller, Saman Shafiq, Janet Loehrke and Karissa Waddick