A 'highly contagious' illness is now spreading through California wildfire shelters

After fleeing the most dangerous wildfire in California state history, a new public health advisory is warning Camp Fire evacuees of a highly contagious virus that’s spreading throughout shelters.

Last week, the Butte County Public Health Department issued an announcement warning displaced persons living in shelters of a recent Norovirus outbreak. According to the county website, at least four shelters have reported symptoms of the gastrointestinal virus, which has infected 145 people as of last week.

At the time of publishing, 25 people had been taken to hospital for treatment, after experiencing diarrhea, vomiting and fever.

ALSO SEE: ‘It’s not worth dying over a tan’: Woman’s tanning bed habit led to a hole in her face

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that Norovirus can be easily transmitted through fecal particles and is often spread through consuming contaminated food or liquids, touching contaminated surfaces and touching your mouth, as well as by directly caring for an infected person.

According to the CDC website, symptoms typically last for 1-3 days, but there is no treatment for Norovirus, and those infected are at a high risk of becoming dehydrated. Although you may feel better, it is still possible to transmit the virus for another 48 hours after your symptoms reside. Some studies show that people can still pass on the virus for up to two weeks after infection.

ALSO SEE: Woman on life support after trying to get a nose job in Mexico — why plastic surgery abroad can be dangerous

The best course of action to prevent the spread of infection is to wash your hands frequently with soap and water and disinfect contaminated surfaces regularly (toilets, sinks etc.)

Health officials are stressing the importance of staying home if you’re experiencing symptoms to prevent the virus from spreading. However, due to the extensive damage of the fires, many people have no other option but to stay in the contaminated shelters.

The Butte County Public Health Department said it’s working with the Red Cross to help reduce the spread of Norovirus and monitoring shelter residents for virus symptoms on an ongoing basis.

Let us know what you think by commenting below and tweeting @YahooStyleCA!
Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

Check out Yahoo Canada’s podcast, Make It Reign — our hot takes on all things royals in a non-stuffy way — on Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.