What to Know
- Measles is very easily spread from person to person; authorities say vaccination is the best preventive care
- Typical symptoms include mild to moderate fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and sore throat
- Most cases involve people who contracted measles while traveling abroad or who did not know they had not been vaccinated
Health officials in New Jersey are warning that two individuals with measles may have come into contact with others in the state, and the exposure risk extends to people who have been to places including Newark Airport.
The cases are not connected, health officials said Friday. In one case, a person stopped briefly in New Jersey April 30 while on a tour bus from Niagara Falls to Washington, D.C. In the second, a Bergen County resident contracted measles after contact with an international traveler who was sick with it at the time.
State health officials say anyone who visited the following locations during the below dates and times should immediately contact a doctor to discuss potential exposure and the associated risks of developing measles:
- Towne Centre at Englewood apartments, 20 W Palisade Ave, Englewood, NJ 07631 (April 24 - May 2 – any time)
- Renaissance Office Center, 15 Engle St, Englewood, NJ 07631 (April 30, between 1 p.m. and 3:45 p.m.)
- Newark Liberty International Airport, Terminal C (May 2, between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.)
- Columbia Travel Center, I-80 at Rt. 94, 2 Simpson Rd, Columbia, NJ 07832 (April 30, between 9:45 a.m. and 12:20 p.m.)
Measles is an extremely contagious disease that can spread quickly among unvaccinated people. Symptoms usually begin seven to 14 days after someone is exposed to an infected person. Typical symptoms include mild to moderate fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and sore throat. As the sickness develops, a rash may emerge and the fever may boom to more than 104 degrees.
Most people who are exposed to measles are not at-risk of developing the disease since most people have either been vaccinated or have had measles in the past, before vaccination became routine. Anyone not sure if they've been vaccinated is advised to check with his or her local physician.
The warning marks the latest in a series of measles cases across the tri-state area. Last week, health officials in Connecticut say there was a third case of measles confirmed, and that person did not have contact with the two babies who contracted it traveling abroad. That case involved an adult in Hartford County. The two babies previously reported to have had measles live in the same New Haven County home; they had recently traveled abroad and became infected outside the U.S.
In mid-April, it was a warning from New York health officials. two European tourists with measles potentially exposed others at three Jehovah's Witness facilities in the NYC area. The two tourists visited the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on New Jersey Avenue in Brooklyn between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on April 15. They also visited Watchtower World Headquarters on Kings Drive in Tuxedo Park between 11 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on April 16 and the Watchtower Educational Center on Watchtower Drive in Patterson between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on April 17.
Officials urged anyone who was exposed and is suffering symptoms to contact a health care provider before seeking treatment in order to minimize exposure.
