A New Mexico man has died of one of the most common clinical forms of the plague, health authorities have confirmed.
The man, who has not been publicly identified, was in his 20s and had received treatment in hospital before he died.
His case is the the first human plague death in New Mexico this year.
Health officials revealed on Friday that the man is the second person to be diagnosed with the disease in 2020 after a man from Sante Fe County was diagnosed with the bubonic plague on July 27 this year.
An environmental investigation will take place at the man's home to look for ongoing risk to immediate family members, neighbours and others in the surrounding community.
“Plague activity in New Mexico is usually highest during the summer months, so it is especially important now to take precautions to avoid rodents and their fleas which can expose you to plague,” said Department of Health Secretary Kathy Kunkel.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identifies bubonic, pneumonic and septicemic as the most common clinical forms of plague.
According to World Health Organisation, the highly infectious disease, known as the "Black Death" in the Middle Ages, is a re-emerging disease.
Plague is a bacterial disease of rodents and is generally transmitted to humans through the bites of infected fleas but can also be transmitted by direct contact with infected animals, including rodents, wildlife and pets.
The New Mexico Department of Health explained that pets that are allowed to roam and hunt can bring infected fleas from dead rodents back into the home, putting household members at risk.
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In order to avoid contracting the plague, the department recommends people avoid sick or dead rodents and rabbits, prevent pets from roaming and hunting and ensure that sick pets are quickly examined by a veterinarian once an illness has been spotted.
The man's death comes after a Chinese city in Inner Mongolia was put on alert after a case of bubonic plague was detected in July.
The level-three alert forbids the hunting or eating of animals that could carry the disease.
According to the New Mexico Department of Health, there were two animal plague cases in New Mexico this year in a dog and one in a cat. Both were from Santa Fe County.
The man's death was the first human plague-related death in New Mexico since 2015. There was a single human plague case in 2019 in a 72-year-old man from Torrance County, and no human plague cases in 2018.