Australia: 2025 Meliodosis

[Shiloh]

Source: https://au.news.yahoo.com/silent-gar...022625150.html

Silent garden killer claims four lives in 'unprecedented' Aussie outbreak
Since January, 41 cases of melioidosis have been recorded in Cairns and its surrounding hinterland region.
Brianne Tolj·Associate News Editor
Updated Wed, 19 February 2025 at 9:26 pm GMT-5·5-min read

WARNING — GRAPHIC IMAGES: An Aussie city is grappling with an “unprecedented” number of residents contracting a silent yet potentially fatal disease that has claimed the lives of four people this year.

Since January, 41 cases of melioidosis — a serious illness caused by bacteria found lurking in tropical North Australian soils and water — have been recorded in Cairns and its surrounding hinterland region.

Local health authorities revealed last week that an investigation was underway after two people had tragically died from the disease, which is commonly associated with heavy rainfall events. The number of fatalities has now doubled, Tropical Public Health Services director Dr Jacqueline Murdoch confirmed on Wednesday.

Since the wet season kicked off in November, almost 60 people have presented to Cairns Hospital with melioidosis, and additional cases have appeared in Townsville, James Cook University microbiologist Jeffrey Warner told Yahoo News Australia. The bacteria is also common in Darwin, but the city has recorded far fewer infections this year...

[Mary Wilson]

5:33pm Feb 12, 2025
By Yashee Sharma

Two people have died from the soil-borne bacterial disease melioidosis in Far North Queensland during the region's unrelenting wet season that saw major flooding and rainfall totals.

The Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service has recorded 30 cases since January 1, including the two deaths. ...

Melioidosis is a rare tropical disease caused by bacteria called Burkholderia pseudomallei, which is commonly found in soil and water in South-East Asia and northern Australia and, in some instances, in south Queensland. ...

https://www.9news.com.au/national/far-north-queensland-two-people-die-melioidosis/05b5adc6-4ecc-48df-92f2-45b98e631d01

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Australia: 14 people killed by bacteria present in soil after floods

By Le Figaro with AFP
Published February 26 at 11:47 a.m., updated February 26 at 12:19 p.m.

A soil-borne bacteria has killed 14 people in the flood-ravaged Australian state of Queensland, authorities said, warning of a resurgence of the outbreak . The 14 people have died since January in the northeastern Australian state, health officials told AFP.

Melioidosis, a rare, antibiotic-resistant disease caused by bacteria found in soil or mud, typically occurs in tropical areas after heavy rain or flooding. While cases have been recorded in Queensland in previous years, 2025 is "a record year ," Queensland's chief health officer Jacqueline Murdoch said. "We've never seen anything like this ," she told national broadcaster ABC this week.

A mortality rate of up to 50%

According to Queensland Health Department data , 94 infections have been reported in the state so far this year. The disease mainly affects people who come into contact with contaminated soil or water. Infection occurs if the bacteria is inhaled or enters the bloodstream, including through broken skin, Murdoch said.

The mortality rate for melioidosis can be as high as 50 percent because "the organism is very aggressive and resistant to antibiotics ," warns John Bowman, a microbiologist at the University of Tasmania. People with weakened immune systems are most at risk, he said. Symptoms of the disease include fever, difficulty breathing, cough and headache. To reduce the risk, people should avoid contact with soil or surface water and disinfect their wounds.

As Murdoch's team looks at the surge in cases, they say "the weather has something to do with it ." Queensland, in Australia's northeast, has suffered severe flooding after several storms brought torrential rain to parts of the state this month, washing away homes and roads and spreading the bacteria.

https://sante.lefigaro.fr/australie-14-personnes-tuees-par-une-bacterie-presente-dans-les-sols-apres-des-inondations-20250226

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-...ason/105155546

Queensland melioidosis death toll climbs after floods spread soil-borne bacteria
By Chloe Chomicki
ABC North Qld
14h ago

The soil-borne disease melioidosis has claimed the life of another Queensland patient.

The Townsville Hospital and Health Service patient is the 26th person to die with melioidosis in Queensland this year.

The death was recorded in the latest melioidosis data released by Queensland Health.

The government health department recorded 10 new cases in the last seven days.

The death in Townsville was one of four new local cases.

In the Cairns health service region, four cases were recorded.

One case was detected in the Mackay health service area and another in Queensland's north west region.

Melioidosis is a tropical disease caused by a bacteria found in water or soil.

Cases often surge during the wet season after heavy rain or flooding.

More cases expected

Townsville recorded its wettest year on record on Saturday with more than 2,419.8 millimetres falling so far in 2025...

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-...emic/105255232

Queensland scientists racing against clock to tackle 'unprecedented' environmental threat of melioidosis
By Tom Hartley
7.30
Topic:Infectious Diseases
1h ag

Under the hum of filtered air and fluorescent light in an air-locked university lab, Jeff Warner lifts an agar plate to eye level, inspecting its potentially deadly contents.

Tilting the violet dish in his double-gloved hand, he notes several streaks of pink — a cross hatching of colonies; tiny microbial clusters teeming with life, invisible to the naked eye.

The distinct colours and formations are instantly recognisable to him: it's the killer bacterium linked to 30 deaths in a "mysterious" and unprecedented outbreak that's devastating Queensland families and putting immense pressure on regional hospitals.

"This organism has currently killed almost one in five people who have acquired it from the environment, here in Cairns and Townsville," Associate Professor Warner told 7.30.

The veteran microbiologist first came across the disease close to 30 years ago and is now considered a global research leader on the topic, based at James Cook University in the tropical north...

[Shiloh]

Source: https://qazinform.com/news/death-tol...s-to-31-363d18

Death toll from tropical disease outbreak in northern Australia climbs to 31
12:46, 15 May 2025

According to the latest data from the health department in Queensland, there were four new cases reported in the past week: one in Townsville and three in the city of Cairns, taking the total number of reported cases in the state this year to 221, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported Wednesday.

The latest fatality from the soil-borne disease melioidosis in Queensland was reported in the past week....