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Bats May Have Infected Girl Scouts With Rabies
Nearly 1,000 Girls May Have Been Exposed

POSTED: 3:19 pm PDT August 7, 2006
UPDATED: 3:29 pm PDT August 7, 2006

LEESBURG, Virginia -- There was a scare for Girl Scouts who attended a summer camp in northern Virginia -- nearly 1,000 girls may have been exposed to rabies.

The Loudon County Health Department said there were bats in the cabins of some of the girls staying at Camp Potomac Woods.

Sixteen girls have been advised to get a month-long series of protective vaccinations.

"The concern is if a girl had gone to sleep at night -- and particularly if she was a heavy sleeper and was not under mosquito netting and there was a bat in the shelter -- in theory that bat may have come in contact with the girl and she wouldn't have remembered it," said Dr. David Goodfriend, with the Loudoun County Health Department.

Health officials are also concerned the girls may have touched one of the bats and not washed their hands.

Girl Scout leaders are reinforcing cabins with extra netting and resuming camp business as usual.