SAN LEANDRO — Visitors to a restaurant here earlier this month may have been exposed to the measles virus, according to the Alameda County Public Health Department.
Health officials on Wednesday said they identified a person with measles who dined at the Sons of Liberty Alehouse on Juana Avenue between 4:45 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on March 9.
“Please note that the identified person did not contract measles from this restaurant and was unaware of their infection at the time,” the public health department said in an advisory.
In a social media post, the Sons of Liberty Alehouse said all of its employees are healthy.
“We want to make it very clear that the health and safety of our staff and guests is our number one priority,” the restaurant said.
Health officials urged people who were at the restaurant on March 9 and are vulnerable to the disease to immediately contact their health care provider and call the public health department at 510-267-3250.
The vulnerable population includes pregnant women or infants 11 months old or younger; anyone who is not vaccinated for measles or unsure of their vaccination status; those who have weak immune systems from being immunocompromised; and health care workers and childcare providers.
“The individuals who are at the highest risk are those who are unvaccinated,” said Contra Costa County Deputy Health Officer Dr. Meera “]Sreenivasan. “What the general public should be wanting to know is whether they are vaccinated. In general in the United States, we have high vaccination rates, but because of the pandemic, we’ve seen a recent decrease.”
The measles virus is highly contagious and is spread with sneezing and coughing or direct contact with secretions, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Measles can be a serious illness if you’re unvaccinated and exposed,” Sreenivasan said. “Back in the day, when we didn’t have the vaccine for it, it was responsible for very serious illnesses and even death.”
The Alameda County Public Health Department urged anyone who visited the Sons of Liberty Alehouse on March 9 to watch for symptoms, which can appear from one week to three weeks after exposure. Symptoms include a fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and a rash.
Health officials said anyone experiencing symptoms of measles should contact their medical facility first before visiting and tell someone on the medical staff that they may have been exposed to the virus.
The World Health Organization declared measles eradicated in the United States in 2000, but the number of reported cases has been climbing in recent years. By early March, the CDC reported 35 measles cases in 15 states.
The California Department of Public Health said Wednesday it was aware of four reported cases of measles statewide.
Staff writer Jason Green contributed to this report.