BREAKING: Passengers at Philadelphia Airport May Have Been Exposed to Measles in Early October

If you visited certain terminals at the Philadelphia International Airport on October 2 and October 3, you may have been exposed to measles, health officials warn.

Pennsylvania Health Department officials say that a person with a suspected case of measles walked through parts of the airport on those dates.

Here are the possible points of exposure:

• Wednesday, Oct. 2, in Terminal F from 6:30 p.m. to midnight
• Thursday, Oct. 3, Terminal F from 4:00 p.m. to midnight
• Thursday, Oct. 3, Terminal A from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
• Thursday, Oct. 3, Terminal A/B shuttle bus from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

The measles vaccine is very effective, so Pennsylvania Health Department officials say that if airport travelers were properly vaccinated, their risk is minimal.

Measles is extremely contagious and the virus can spread for up to two hours in the air after an infected person has coughed or sneezed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The disease is contagious for four days before its hallmark rash appears, the CDC says.

Symptoms typically appear one to three weeks after exposure and include a rash; high fever; cough; and red, watery eyes.

If you believe you might have been exposed and experience symptoms, you’re asked to contact your health-care provider or call the state’s hotline at 1-877-PA-HEALTH.

Fifteen cases of the disease have been reported in Pennsylvania this year. More than 1,200 have been reported in the country this year, making it the greatest outbreak since 1992 for the United States, officials say.