Two boys who possibly handled a rabies-infected bat in Corona could suffer health complications, prompting Riverside County officials Wednesday to urge their parents to have the children tested.
The youths, described only as 11- to 12-year-olds on bicycles, may have picked up the rabid bat Monday afternoon before it died, according to the Department of Public Health.
Health officials said a man who later retrieved the creature and turned it over to health officials said he spotted the youths, who appeared to touch the bat. It was lying in the parking area of an industrial park at 301 Lincoln Ave., officials said.
“It is important that these children be seen by a health care provider because of the potential for a serious health issue,” county Public Health Officer Dr. Geoffrey Leung said.
The bat was confirmed to have been a carrier of rabies following tests at a county lab, he said.
Rabies impacts the central nervous system and is transmitted through saliva of a wild animal. Humans can be exposed if they’re bitten, or if the saliva otherwise enters a break in a person’s skin, according to the California Department of Public Health.
A rabies vaccine is available, but if it is not administered in time, “there is no effective treatment, and the infected person will likely die within a few days,” CDPH said.
Anyone with concerns about exposure risks was encouraged to contact the county health department at 951-358-5107.