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A man died from Alaskapox last month. Here's what we know about the virus
In January, a man living on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula died of Alaskapox. Pictured is Bear Glacier in the Kenai Fjords National Park on Sept. 1, 2015, in Seward, Alaska.
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
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Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
In January, a man living on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula died of Alaskapox. Pictured is Bear Glacier in the Kenai Fjords National Park on Sept. 1, 2015, in Seward, Alaska.
Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
Alaska health officials reported last week that a man died in January after contracting a virus known as Alaskapox.
The disease was first discovered in a person living near Fairbanks, Alaska, in 2015, and there have been several known infections since then.
But officials believe that last month’s case is the first fatality from the newly discovered virus — as well as the first known case outside the state’s interior — and authorities are now urging doctors across the state to be on the lookout for signs of the disease.
Still, authorities note that immunocompromised people may be at a higher risk for severe illness from the virus, and so far the only known cases of Alaskapox have been detected within the state.
What is Alaskapox?
Alaskapox is a type of orthopoxvirus that infects mammals, including humans, and causes skin lesions. Other orthopoxviruses include the now-eradicated smallpox virus as well as mpox, which was previously known as monkeypox and experienced an outbreak of thousands of cases worldwide in 2022.
“Orthopoxviruses are zoonotic viruses, meaning that they circulate primarily within animal populations with spill over into humans occasionally,” said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiologist Julia Rogers, as reported by Alaska Public Media.
Alaska’s Division of Public Health says the virus has been found primarily in small animals in the Fairbanks area, such as shrews and red-backed voles.
Patients typically have one or more skin lesions and can also develop swollen lymph nodes and joint or muscle pain.
What do we know about the reported Alaskapox cases?
There have been seven known infections in Alaska since 2015, including last month’s fatality. Six of the infections were detected in the Fairbanks area, while the man who died last month was from a forested area of the Kenai Peninsula.
The patient who was hospitalized and later died was an “elderly man” who lived alone and was immunocompromised from cancer treatment, which “likely contributed” to the severity of his illness, officials say.
The man also told health officials that he gardened in his backyard and took care of a stray cat, which hunted small animals nearby and would frequently scratch him. The cat tested negative for orthopoxvirus.
Officials believe there have been more cases of Alaskapox in humans that weren’t caught.
Rogers, the epidemiologist, said she expects Alaskapox infections to remain rare.
Most patients who had documented cases of Alaskapox suffered mild illnesses that cleared up on their own after a few weeks.
Can I get Alaskapox from another person?
It’s unclear.
To date, no human-to-human transmission has been documented, Alaska’s Department of Health says.
It also notes that some orthopoxviruses can be passed on via contact with skin lesions.
Pet cats and dogs may also spread the virus.
“We are not sure exactly how the virus spreads from animals to people but contact with small mammals and potentially domestic pets who come into contact [with] small wild mammals could play a role,” the Division of Public Health says on its website.
Health officials encourage people with lesions potentially caused by Alaskapox to keep them covered with a bandage.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people keep a safe distance from wildlife and wash their hands after being outside.
What’s being done to respond to the Alaskapox cases?
The first six cases of Alaskapox were discovered in the Fairbanks area, but the more recent case occurred in the Kenai Peninsula, indicating that the virus is more geographically widespread in the state than previously known.
The Alaska Section of Epidemiology, along with the CDC and the University of Alaska Museum, are working outside the state’s interior region to test small mammals for the virus.
State health officials are also urging Alaska doctors to familiarize themselves with the symptoms of Alaskapox and report any suspected cases to the Section of Epidemiology.
new video loaded: Americans Exposed to Hantavirus on Cruise Ship Arrive in United States
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Americans Exposed to Hantavirus on Cruise Ship Arrive in United States
Eighteen passengers who were aboard the MV Hondius, a cruise ship with a deadly hantavirus outbreak, landed in Omaha on a U.S. government medical flight. The passengers were being monitored at medical facilities in Nebraska and Georgia.
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We’re working diligently to ensure no one leaves the security in an unsecured way at an inappropriate time. No one who poses a risk to public health is walking out the front door of the streets of Omaha or beyond.
By Axel Boada
May 11, 2026
The man charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner last month pleaded not guilty at a Monday arraignment in federal court.
Cole Tomas Allen, 31, wearing an orange shirt and trousers, was handcuffed and shackled as he was brought into the courtroom in Washington, D.C., federal court. His handcuffs were attached to a chain around his waist, which clanked as he was led to the defense table.
Speaking on behalf of Allen, federal public defender Tezira Abe said her client “pleads not guilty to all four counts as charged,” including attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, in connection with the April 25 incident at the Washington Hilton hotel.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Jones advised the court that they plan to start producing their first tranche of discovery to the defense by the end of the week.
Officials said Allen, a California teacher and engineer, was armed with multiple guns, as well as knives, when he sprinted through a security checkpoint near the event where Trump and other White House officials had gathered with journalists.
He was arrested after an exchange of gunfire with a U.S. Secret Service officer who fired at him multiple times, a criminal complaint said. Allen was not shot during the exchange. The officer, who was wearing a ballistic vest, was shot once in the chest, treated at a hospital and released.
Trump and top members of his Cabinet and Congress were quickly evacuated from the room as others ducked under tables.
Allen was initially charged with attempting to assassinate the president, transportation of a firearm and ammunition through interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. On Tuesday, a federal grand jury indicted him on a new charge in the shooting of a Secret Service agent.
Moments before the attack, Allen had sent his family members a note apologizing and criticizing Trump without mentioning the president by name, according to a transcript of some of his writings provided to NBC News by a senior administration official. Allen also wrote that “administration officials (not including Mr. Patel)” were “targets.”
He also appeared to have taken a selfie in his hotel room. Prosecutors said Allen, who was dressed in a black button-down shirt and black pants, was “wearing a small leather bag consistent in appearance with the ammunition-filled bag later recovered from his person,” as well as a shoulder holster, a sheathed knife, pliers and wire cutters.
Officials have said they believe Allen had traveled by train from California to Washington, D.C., before checking into the hotel.
Allen’s sister, Avriana Allen, told law enforcement that her brother would make radical comments and constantly referenced a plan to fix the world, but said their parents were unaware that he had firearms in the home and that he would regularly train at shooting ranges.
Records show that he had purchased a Maverick 12-gauge shotgun in August 2025 and an Armscor Precision .38 semiautomatic pistol in October 2023.
After his arrest, Allen told the FBI that he did not expect to survive the incident, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Ballantine. He was briefly placed on suicide watch at the Washington, D.C., jail, where he’s being held.
Allen is expected to appear in court for a June 29 hearing.
At Monday’s arraignment, his legal team said they plan on asking for the “entire office” of the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia to be recused because of U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s apparent involvement in the case in a “supervisory role.” Federal public defender Eugene Ohm said some of the evidence they receive from the government will further inform that decision.
Note: Map shows the area with a shake intensity of 3 or greater, which U.S.G.S. defines as “weak,” though the earthquake may be felt outside the areas shown. The New York Times
Shake intensity
Pop. density
A cluster of earthquakes have struck near the U.S.-Mexico border, including ones with a 4.5 and 4.7 magnitude, according to the United States Geological Survey.
As seismologists review available data, they may revise the earthquake’s reported magnitude. Additional information collected about the earthquake may also prompt U.S.G.S. scientists to update the shake-severity map.
Subsequent quakes have been reported in the same area. Such temblors are typically aftershocks caused by minor adjustments along the portion of a fault that slipped at the time of the initial earthquake.
Aftershocks detected
Quakes and aftershocks within 100 miles
Aftershocks can occur days, weeks or even years after the first earthquake. These events can be of equal or larger magnitude to the initial earthquake, and they can continue to affect already damaged locations.
The New York Times
When quakes and aftershocks occurred
Sources: United States Geological Survey (epicenter, aftershocks, shake intensity); LandScan via Oak Ridge National Laboratory (population density) | Notes: Shaking categories are based on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale. When aftershock data is available, the corresponding maps and charts include earthquakes within 100 miles and seven days of the initial quake. All times above are Pacific time. Shake data is as of Saturday, May 9 at 11:55 p.m. Eastern. Aftershocks data is as of Sunday, May 10 at 11:54 p.m. Eastern.
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