WHAT EL NINO HATH WROUGHT
Abundant rain and a mild winter, brought on by El Nino, has led to a booming rodent population in the southwest. Now health authorities are bracing for the possible aftermath: an outbreak of the deadly Hantavirus. First identified in 1993, the virus killed twenty people that year. The disease is fatal in about half the cases, and is spread through contact with deer mice droppings or urine.
Another possible consequence of El Nino has been a Pfiesteria outbreak in North Carolina rivers. The toxic microorganism causes skin lesions and stupefies the fish, killing millions of them. It may affect people in the same way. Heavy spring rains and a dry summer have led to thriving numbers of the microbe, which flourishes in sewage- and fertilizer-contaminated waters.