Frankfurt is experiencing a rare malaria outbreak linked to air travel, with three reported deaths in recent months. A third individual died from malaria after a cluster of cases associated with Frankfurt Airport, which German officials have described as an unusual air-traffic-related outbreak of the tropical disease.
In a statement on Thursday, the city administration reported that the deceased was one of two residents from the Schwanheim district, located near the airport, who were infected. The two new malaria cases were reported on Tuesday.
According to the statement, both individuals contracted the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum without having traveled to a malaria-endemic region or having worked at the airport.
The city’s public health department indicated that the two newly infected residents likely contracted the disease from a mosquito that was brought into Germany via an aircraft or luggage.
In July, six workers at Frankfurt Airport contracted malaria tropica, the most dangerous form of the disease, with two of those individuals later succumbing to the illness.
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease that can be life-threatening and is extremely rare in Germany. The malaria parasite is transmitted between humans by certain types of mosquitoes, not through direct human-to-human contact.
In response to the outbreak, Frankfurt Airport operator Fraport has implemented mosquito traps and sent the captured insects to a laboratory in Antwerp, Belgium, for analysis, though results have not yet been reported.
Health authorities have advised doctors in the vicinity of the airport to consider malaria in patients presenting with fever. Airport workers and local residents have been encouraged to seek medical attention if they exhibit symptoms such as fever, chills, headaches, confusion, seizures, or breathing difficulties.
An airport spokesperson noted that local public health authorities have the authority to require airlines to disinfect aircraft if necessary.