Hantavirus Safety Must Take Priority

Recently, hantavirus killed a woman in New Mexico. She was the fifth person to die from the disease in New Mexico this year. Seven have been infected. Only two have survived.

Although the ailment is relatively rare, it is extremely deadly. And it is folly to think it couldn’t happen here. A Santa Barbara resident died from hantavirus in 1992.

In Channel Islands National Park, 70% of the deer mice are infected with hantavirus--seven times the mainland rate. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand the potential danger to visitors. Neither should it take an act of Congress to force National Park Service officials to effectively inform the public. Yet it may.

Park officials have known for months about the hantavirus on the islands and have done little to inform the public. In February, the California Department of Health Services complained to Congress that the Park Service was downplaying the problem. Signs reportedly were taken down. Visitors weren’t being told.

Because I am a senior member of the House Resources Committee, the committee brought the state’s concerns to me. In early March, I called for hearings. In the ensuing months, I was kept apprised of communications among the committee, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health Services and the Park Service. I have served on the Resources Committee longer than any other committee and have always been a strong proponent of the Park Service. But I became increasingly disappointed in its lack of response to the hantavirus situation.

Memorial Day weekend arrived--the unofficial start of the summer season and heightened use of the islands. Over the weekend, Drake Hunter, a 7-year-old Oxnard boy, played with an infected mouse on Santa Rosa Island. The boy’s mother insisted that the mouse be tested. She knew of the hantavirus problem from media reports, not from Park Service advisories.

The Resources Committee contacted me as soon as the Department of Health Services told them about Drake. During that conversation state officials said they were concerned because Park Service officials still hadn’t responded to a March letter about lax notification procedures.

*

We’ve reached the point where the situation cannot be tolerated. On June 29, the subcommittee on national parks and public lands will conduct a hearing. Ironically, it will be six days after the Park Service finally conducts a training session for its employees on the Channel Islands--nearly half a year after the session should have been held.

I do not want to close Channel Islands National Park. It is one of the jewels of Southern California. The islands’ isolation and rugged beauty make them an unparalleled treasure. But I cannot let the federal government put lives at risk.

Visitors can take simple precautions to minimize risks. Everything possible should be done to inform them of hantavirus and ways to avoid it. I am appealing for a proactive program, not simply information buried deep within a Web site or brochures on a counter among dozens of others.

The point is not to close the park but to give the public all the information it needs to safely enjoy this natural wonder. That point has strong bipartisan support from Reps. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) and Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks).

If we are going to err, let’s err on the side of caution. The National Park Service must make public health and safety its top concern at Channel Islands.