Health officials in Orange County issued a warning Wednesday after a bat found on the steps outside a building at Fullerton College tested positive for rabies.
The live bat was discovered on January 29 on the east side of the 1100 Building, according to a news release from the Orange County Health Care Agency.
The rabies virus is found in the saliva of an infected animals and is generally transmitted to people through a bite, the release stated.
Transmission of the virus can occur from “minor, seemingly unimportant, or unrecognized bites from bats,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Early treatment was crucial, according to the OCHCA, which said the disease was nearly always fatal once symptoms begin to appear.
Rabies symptoms were described as being similar to the flu virus, “including general weakness or discomfort, fever or headache,” the CDC stated.
Anyone who had physical contact with the bat or saw someone else in contact with the bat was asked to call Orange County Health Care Agency Epidemiology at 714-834-8180 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. or 714-834-7792 after hours to determine their risk for rabies.