Measles breaks out at massive NYC migrant shelter

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Measles breaks out at massive NYC migrant shelter

At least two people staying at a massive migrant shelter in New York city have been diagnosed with measles. (Credit: Fox News Digital)

At least two people staying at a sprawling migrant shelter in New York City have contracted measles and health officials in the Big Apple are working to stop the spread of the disease, according to reports. 

The outbreak took place at a migrant shelter on Hall Street in Clinton Hill, a huge taxpayer-run facility which opened last year. The facility houses around 3,000 migrants.

The two people who tested positive are being quarantined on one floor of the building while dozens more are also being quarantined, according to CBS.

VACCINATING MIGRANTS LIKE US CHILDREN WOULD HAVE PREVENTED DISEASE OUTBREAKS AT CHICAGO SHELTERS: EXPERTS

At least two people staying at a sprawling migrant shelter in New York City have contracted measles. Health officials are now working to stop the spread of the disease, according to reports. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)

Measles is a highly contagious and serious airborne disease that can lead to severe complications and even death, especially in children. It is characterized by a fever as high as 105°F and malaise, cough, coryza and conjunctivitis followed by spots and a rash, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The news comes amid a spike of measles cases in the city, with 11 cases reported in 2024 as of July 12, according to the city’s health department. That is up from just one case last year, which followed three consecutive years of zero cases being reported. In 2019, a major outbreak in the city saw 605 cases. 

The number of measles cases in the U.S. so far this year is nearly three times the total for all of 2023. A total of 167 measles cases have been reported so far this year in the U.S., with about 53% of those cases resulting in hospitalization as of July 11, according to the CDC.

There have also been measles and tuberculosis outbreaks at migrant facilities in Chicago. At least two students who tested positive for measles were attending school.

TUBERCULOSIS BREAKS OUT AT CHICAGO MIGRANT SHELTERS FOLLOWING MEASLES CASES

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Newly arrived migrants are offered vaccines at a Midtown intake facility, city officials say. It’s not clear how many people at the Clinton Hill facility are vaccinated. Fox News Digital reached out to the mayor’s office and the city’s health department for comment but did not immediately receive a response. 

City Councilmember Crystal Hudson, who represents the district where the facility is located, says the city should be doing more to vaccinate the migrants.

"My office has been pushing this administration to provide vaccines to residents at this site for months, only to be rebuffed time and time again," Hudson told the New York Post. "In fact, our request for a vaccination van at an on-site resource fair organized by my office on June 1 was denied."

New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan says people at the shelter who may have been exposed will be tested to verify if they were vaccinated for measles. Those who were not will have to quarantine for three weeks, Vasan said, according to CBS.

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Police patrol outside the migrant shelter in Brooklyn on July 21, 2023, where an outbreak of measles occurred. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

"The Health Department and Health + Hospitals are coordinating to ensure that anyone who's been exposed gets the support and resources they need," Vasan told the outlet in a statement, while encouraging people to get vaccinated. 

"While measles may be an extremely contagious virus, the risk to the community is low as most New Yorkers are vaccinated against it. Importantly, measles is preventable. The single best way to prevent measles is to be vaccinated."

The measles virus under a microscope (BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Officials say the risk of contracting measles is extremely low after getting vaccinated.