ULAN BATOR, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia on Monday started a 10-day immunization campaign, using vaccines against bubonic plague in high-risk areas to prevent the disease in the country.
The national campaign, which is being carried out by the Mongolian Health Ministry and the National Center for Zoonotic Diseases, seeks to vaccinate at least 32,400 people who are at risk of being infected with bubonic plague.
The campaign came after a couple died of bubonic plague in the western Mongolian province of Bayan-Ulgii in late April due to eating raw marmot meat.
The plague is a bacterial disease that is spread by fleas living on wild rodents such as marmots. The disease can kill an adult in less than 24 hours if not treated in time, according to the World Health Organization.
