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Research professional Nate Beck prepares a sample of wastewater from the Asplund Wastewater Treatment Plant so that it can be tested for SARS-CoV-2 on Feb. 6, 2024 at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Wastewater sampling in Alaska screens for a variety of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, different varieties of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, as well as measles. (Loren Holmes \/ ADN archive) <\/p>\n
At least one person in Anchorage had measles in early and mid-July, creating a risk that the highly infectious disease could spread through the state\u2019s largest city, state health officials are warning.<\/p>\n
The proof is in the sewage<\/a>.<\/p>\n Samples taken from Anchorage\u2019s John M. Asplund Wastewater Treatment Facility<\/a> revealed genetic material from the strain of measles that has caused outbreaks in the Lower 48.<\/p>\n It means someone carrying the virus was in the part of Anchorage served by the state\u2019s biggest wastewater treatment plant, said Dr. Joe McLaughlin, Alaska\u2019s state epidemiologist.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t tell us where exactly they were in the sewershed, and it also doesn\u2019t tell us if there was any human-to-human transmission that\u2019s occurring,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But it does provide an early warning to health providers and the general public, McLaughlin said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s important for people to take a look and see if they\u2019ve been vaccinated, or if their children have been vaccinated,\u201d he said. If children have not been vaccinated, \u201cgo ahead and get them vaccinated, because we know that this virus has been present in the community. And it may still be present.\u201d<\/p>\n The presence of measles RNA, the virus\u2019s single-strand genetic material, was detected in samples taken on July 7, 8, 9 and 14, health officials said. State and municipal health officials are still waiting for results from more recent wastewater testing, McLaughlin said.<\/p>\n Samples from the Asplund plant are usually taken every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, said Clayton Weingartner, the Division of Public Health\u2019s wastewater surveillance coordinator.<\/p>\n Performing the scan that detects measles genetic material is a complex process, he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an expensive test, and it takes longer to get the results,\u201d he said. That is why state officials are still waiting for results from last week\u2019s sampling, he said.<\/p>\n For now, public health officials say, Anchorage residents and other Alaskans should be on the lookout for signs of measles<\/a>.<\/p>\n Symptoms, which usually arrive a week or two after infection, include a high fever, a runny nose, red eyes and a skin rash. The disease can be serious and even fatal, especially for young children. There were three measles deaths<\/a> in the United States last year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n As of Tuesday, there were no new reports of any patients with measles in Anchorage. The last Anchorage case was in October, affecting an adult<\/a> who tested positive after traveling to the city from the Lower 48, according to municipal officials. There was also a child in Anchorage<\/a> who was diagnosed with measles in May of 2025.<\/p>\n Elsewhere in the state, there were four measles cases diagnosed last year, according to health officials.<\/p>\n McLaughlin said there are reasons for Alaskans to be vigilant.<\/p>\n There are more measles cases<\/a> in the United States now than at any time in the past 35 years, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd we\u2019re at peak tourist season right now, so there are people coming into Alaska from the Lower 48 and from many different countries, and they\u2019re bringing with them, some of them, different pathogens,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd one of them can be measles. And we know that measles is the most contagious virus that we\u2019re aware of on the planet.\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, Alaskans are at elevated risk because the rate of measles vaccination is low<\/a> compared to the rest of the nation.<\/p>\n Medical providers should be notified if there are suspected measles infections, McLaughlin said. Patients should not be in clinic waiting rooms because the virus is so contagious, he said.<\/p>\n Whenever a case is identified, health officials have to trace the places where that patient may have exposed others to the virus, such as daycare centers, stores and recreational sites. \u201cAll that kind of stuff takes a lot of work, and that\u2019s just for one case,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Wastewater sampling in Alaska screens for a variety of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, different varieties of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, as well as measles.<\/p>\n Numerous sites<\/a> participate in the National Wastewater Surveillance System<\/a>, or NWSS, that was set up by the CDC in 2020 as part of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. But the Asplund plant, which serves most of Anchorage\u2019s residents, is the only one in Alaska that participates in the most advanced testing program, a privately operated system called WastewaterSCAN<\/a>, Weingartner said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe WastewaterSCAN program has very limited testing slots,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, the University of Alaska Anchorage<\/a> and the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corp. are also testing wastewater for disease pathogens, he said. Samples are regularly collected from wastewater in Eagle River, Juneau and Bethel.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/QVJLW3W37RGVTLLXH6E2LNTE4A.JPG\")
One of six clarifiers at the AWWU Asplund Wastewater Treatment Facility at Point Woronzof on Dec. 10, 2024. (Bill Roth \/ ADN) <\/p>\n