Pasadena Public Health Department Monitoring Bird Flu Developments, Says Risk to General Public is Low

Health officials sought to reassure Pasadena residents Wednesday after California’s governor declared a state of emergency following the discovery of bird flu in Southern California dairy cattle.

“The risk remains low for the general public,” said Manuel Carmona, Acting Director for the Pasadena Public Health Department, characterizing the emergency declaration as a preventive measure to ensure local health departments that need to can access proper resources.

“The Pasadena Public Health Department is monitoring developments and coordinating with state and regional public health partners,” Carmona said.

The H5N1 virus, commonly known as bird flu, was detected last week in cattle at four Southern California dairies, according to the governor’s office. The specific locations were not disclosed. This discovery represents a concerning geographic spread of the virus, which had previously been confined to Central California, where 641 dairies reported confirmed cases between late August and early December.

The expansion has prompted state officials to pivot from their initial regional containment strategy to a broader statewide monitoring and response approach for active cases.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that California has documented 34 human cases of bird flu, with all but one case directly connected to infected cattle. While the source of the remaining case remains unknown, health officials note there have been no documented instances of human-to-human transmission in California.

The outbreak, which first appeared in cattle in Texas and Kansas last March, has now affected 865 confirmed cattle cases across 16 states, with 61 human cases reported nationwide.