San Diego Washing Streets with Bleach to Combat Hepatitis A Outbreak

September 18, 2017 Editor

(NPR) San Diego has started washing its downtown streets with bleach in an effort to combat an outbreak of hepatitis A that has killed at least 15 people and infected nearly 400.
Photo by ppressurewash (CC)

The infectious disease has largely infected homeless people in the coastal California city, and part of the issue is an apparent shortage of public restrooms in areas where the population congregates.

Hepatitis A was first identified in the area in early March, according to the county, and declared a public health emergency earlier this month.

A letter from San Diego County health officials stated that hepatitis A is being spread though contact with a “fecally contaminated environment” as well as person-to-person transmission.

The county issued a directive on Aug. 31 demanding that the city carry out street washing and expand public restroom access, adding that “failure to immediately follow this directive will endanger public health and safety.”

On Friday, the city said it would “fully comply with the directive,” targeting areas in downtown frequented by homeless people at risk of contracting hepatitis A.
Contractors started spraying down areas Monday with the diluted household bleach solution, continued Wednesday, and are set to hit the final zone of downtown by Friday, according to a city spokesperson.

The procedure, as prescribed by the county, involves first spraying down hazardous items such as human waste or needles, waiting 10 minutes, removing the contaminated items, then spraying the area again with bleach. After that, it calls for pressure-washing the area with water.

It is set to be repeated every two weeks, with weekly “spot maintenance,” according to county guidelines…

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