Madagascar Black Death IS Back
World Health Organization (WHO) reported just 33 deaths in October, according to French news agency AFP, which has since risen to 94 people, showing how quickly the plague is spreading.
There are now nearly 1,000 suspected cases as the Red Cross battle to contain the illness to prevent it spreading even further.
Many may now be questioning whether it is safe for Britons to travel to Madagascar.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated their travel advice for any Britons heading to the country, particularly in the capital Antananarivo.
It states: “There is currently an outbreak of pneumonic and bubonic plague in Madagascar.
“Outbreaks of plague tend to be seasonal and occur mainly during the rainy season, with around 500 cases reported annually.
“Whilst outbreaks are not uncommon in rural areas, the latest outbreak has seen an increase in reported cases in urban areas, including Antananarivo.
Those travelling to the country should ensure they have the correct travel insurance to stay protected if needing any emergency medical help: “Make sure you have adequate travel health insurance and accessible funds to cover the cost of any medical treatment abroad and repatriation.”
Madagascar has suffered from the plague outbreaks since 1980, with the rainy season between September and April being the worst.
However, it is usually contained to more rural areas so having hit the capital city, it has caused concern over the outbreaks path.
WHO spokesperson Tarik Jašarević told Vox it is something “which we have not seen before.”
The plagues currently sweeping across Madagascar are the pneumonic and bubonic, which are different in the way they travel between people.
The pneumonic plague spreads through droplets after people cough which then infects the lungs and breathing, whilst bubonic plague is spread by infected fleas and rodents.
Due to how easily it spread, WHO has also issued a warning to some of the surrounding countries after a man was confirmed to have the disease after coming from the Seychelles.
The second countries at a high risk of an outbreak are South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Mauritius, Comoros, Seychelles, and Reunion.
The plague can be cured with antibiotics as long as people seek treatment as soon as seeing any symptoms.
What is plague?
Plague is an infectious disease caused by bacteria usually found in small mammals and their fleas.
It has an extremely high fatality rate and is very infectious, although it can be treated by antibiotics if it's caught early.
There are three forms of plague infection: pneumoic plague, septicaemic plague and bubonic plague, the most common form.
Bubonic plague was known as the Black Death in medieval Europe, where an outbreak brought entire civilisations to their knees and decimated the world's population.
Black Death is spread through the bite of infected fleas, whereas pneumonic plague, the most contagious form, develops after a bubonic infection.
Pneumonic infections can then be spread through the air, while septicaemic plague occurs when infection spreads through the bloodstream.
When was the Black Death?
The Black Death, a widespread bubonic plague infection, peaked in Europe between 1346 and 1353.
It was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, leaving an estimated 75 - 200 million people dead in Eurasia.
This fatality rate represents a staggering 30-60 per cent of the European population at the time.
After the plague, society experienced a series of marked changes, including a rise in religious fanaticism.
Lacking the medical knowledge to understand the pandemic, some groups blamed Jews and lepers for the outbreak - resulting in mass killings throughout Europe.
It took around 300 years for global populations to return to pre-plague levels after the outbreak.
What are plague symptoms?
The World Health Organisation describes plague symptoms as "flu like", with one to seven days between incubation and the symptoms emerging.
Sufferers are likely to have painful lymph nodes, chills, fever, headaches, weakness and fatigue.
In bubonic sufferers, these inflamed lymph nodes may end up turning into pus-filled open sores.
Bubonic plague is fatal in 30-60 per cent of cases, while the pneumonic kind is always fatal, if left untreated.
How is plague spread?
The three different types of plague all refer to different ways the disease can be spread.
In bubonic infections, plague-causing bacteria can be transmitted between animals and fleas, with infected fleas then passing the disease on to people through bites.
Infected people may then develop pneumonic plague once their bubonic infection becomes advanced.
Lung-based pneumonic plague can then sometimes be transmitted through the air between sufferers.
Following a pneumonic or bubonic infection, people can then develop septicaemic plague, which occurs when the infection spreads through the bloodstream.
What has happened in Madagascar?
Health officials have warned that "no one is safe" from a deadly outbreak of Black Death on the holiday island of Madagascar.
They say the disease has now become much more contagious because it is now being transmitted from person-to-person through the air – as well as from animals to humans through infected flea bites.
The death toll has reached at least 100, with the UK Government warning British tourists to stay away from plague-hit areas.
While cases of bubonic plague occur in Madagascar nearly every year, this years epidemic is "much more dangerous", according to one expert.
The disease remains endemic in rural parts of the African island but the rise in the pneumonic version of the illness has sparked particular concern.
The World Health Organisation said that this year, plague arrived earlier than expected, and the infection is also spreading in urban centres and in areas that until now had not been affected.
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