A bat found in Jamestown’s Beavertail State Park tested positive for rabies last week and was euthanized, the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) announced Tuesday.
The rabid bat was found by a worker near the water hose spigot on the park’s Lighthouse Building around 9 a.m. on July 30. The health department urges anyone who may have come in contact with the bat to seek medical attention.
According to the health department, the bat had injuries “of unknown origin” when discovered and later showed signs of rabies when it was transferred to a wildlife rehab facility. The bat was then euthanized and sent to the State Health Laboratories in Providence for testing on Aug. 1, where it was confirmed the bat had rabies.
This is the second case of rabid animals that the health department has publicized this summer, following the discovery of a rabid cat in Coventry in July.
State health officials are reminding the public that all dogs, cats, and ferrets need to be vaccinated per state law. These animals can acquire and transmit rabies from other animals.
Rabies is almost always fatal if left untreated, with around a 100% mortality rate, but prompt post-exposure treatment, which involves a vaccine and antibodies, is highly effective at preventing severe illness and death. Each year, about 60,000 people in the U.S. receive this treatment, according to the U.S. National Park Service.
In the U.S., human rabies cases are rare, with only two to three reported annually. No deaths had been recorded among patients who received modern post-exposure treatment until 2021, according to a case study published in October 2024 in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. The fatal rabies case involved an 84-year-old Minnesota man who received treatment but had preexisting health conditions. He died six months after a bat bite.
Rabies causes an estimated 59,000 deaths globally each year, mainly in parts of Africa and Asia where it’s harder to access treatment.
You can find more information about rabies on the health department’s website.
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
