Rare fungal outbreak in Michigan suspected to affect nearly 100 paper mill workers
Misty Severi
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Michigan health officials are looking into nearly 100 suspected cases of a fungal infection linked to a paper mill in the state after employees started to have unusual pneumonia symptoms about a month ago.
At least 19 cases of the fungal infection blastomycosis have been confirmed so far, and another 74 cases are suspected. The investigation began last month after 15 employees at the Escanaba Billerud Paper Mill appeared to be sick. No source of the infection has been identified, but further testing confirmed the cases were not pneumonia.
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“Although the source of the infection has not been established, we continue to take this matter very seriously and are following recommendations from health and government officials and implementing numerous, proactive steps to protect the health and safety of our employees, contractors and visitors,” Brian Peterson, the mill’s vice president of operations, said in a press release Friday.
Blastomycosis is a disease associated with a fungus that primarily grows in moist soil and on decomposing organic matter such as wood and leaves. Humans can get a blastomycosis infection by breathing in fungal spores from the air, but it is not contagious from person to person, according to Public Health Delta & Menominee Counties. The county is overseeing the investigation.
The fungus that causes the infection is normally found in the areas surrounding the Great Lakes and along the Ohio, Mississippi, and Saint Lawrence rivers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Symptoms of a blastomycosis infection include cough (sometimes with blood), fever, chest pain, difficulty breathing, night sweats, fatigue, weight loss, muscle aches, and joint pain, according to the county health department. The infection can sometimes spread to the lungs or other organs by becoming septic, the CDC said.
The Michigan paper mill employs more than 800 people, according to its website. It can produce approximately 730,000 tons of paper annually.