Pneumonic plague is caused by bacteria carried by species like rats and prairie dogs. Pneumonic and bubonic plague transmission and symptoms vary. Pneumonic plague killed a resident of northern Arizona, who died in the emergency room at Flagstaff Medical Center.

MONDAY, July 14, 2025 (HealthDay News) — An Arizona resident has died from pneumonic plague, a rare but serious illness, health officials confirmed. The death happened in Coconino County in Northern Arizona, which includes Flagstaff. Officials gave no information about the person who died, The Associated Press reported.

Arizona's Coconino County, near Flagstaff, has reported a pneumonic plague death, its first since 2007. The Arizona resident, who suffered a severe lung infection caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium,