The measles outbreak that has spread like wildfire across the United States has now made its way to Canada, and, according to Yahoo News, it may have spread at a Christian youth conference in Toronto.
Canadian health officials warned Monday that a person with measles may have spread the virus at a recent large gathering of Christian youth in Toronto.
An outbreak with at least one case linked to a flare-up of the virus in the neighboring United States has so far struck three Canadian provinces.
The latest case of a person who attended the “Acquire the Fire” event at the Queensway Cathedral in Toronto on February 6 and 7 brings the Canadian total to 22.
Local health officials are warning the conference’s attendees to monitor themselves.
Ontario province’s acting chief medical officer, Robin Williams, said the Toronto event attracted “a large number of youth from all over Ontario, as well as performers, volunteers and speakers.”
He said the person with a newly-confirmed case of measles had attended the event during the infectious period.
Williams urged anyone who was in attendance to keep an eye out for symptoms over the next two weeks. These include fever, cough, runny nose, and inflammation of the eyes or rash.
Canada has been free of endemic measles since 1998, except for an outbreak in 2011 in Quebec province that reached 700 cases.
The outbreak began to draw international attention when California health officials discovered that the infections had spread due to one or more infected individuals attending Disneyland during the holidays last year.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member