By Associated Press November 22 at 5:07 AM
JOHANNESBURG — The World Health Organization says 40 people have died from the plague in Madagascar.
WHO said 119 people have been diagnosed with the bacterial disease since August, with two cases found in the densely populated capital, Antananarivo.
WHO said a national task force has been set up to manage the outbreak. The international health organization said it was working with the Red Cross and Madagascan health authorities to control the disease.
The plague is a disease carried by rodents and spread by fleas. Humans are most often infected when they are bitten by fleas, causing swelling of the lymph nodes and sometimes pneumonia.
According to health officials the swollen lymph nodes can be treated with antibiotics but the pneumonia may kill patients within 24 hours.
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