State and local health officials are investigating and monitoring plague activity in southwest Colorado after a person was infected in Montezuma County this month.

Officials said the exposure to plague likely occurred on private property.

Plague is caused by a bacteria called Yersinia pestis, which can be transmitted to people if bitten by infected fleas or by direct contact with infected animals. Animals susceptible to the plague includes squirrels, woodrats, and prairie dogs.

Officials from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and Montezuma County Public Health Department said the risk to the public is low, but Coloradans should take steps to protect themselves, particularly since the risk of contracting illnesses from animals increases during the summer months, when humans and animals are in closer contact.

Plague symptoms are similar to the flu – fever, headache, weakness, muscle aches, cough, shortness of breath, and chills, and sometimes, people also develop swollen and painful lymph nodes – but they are more serious, with some people coughing up blood and pneumonia developing quickly.

Officials said that anyone with these symptoms who may have been exposed to rodents or fleas should seek medical care right away.

Health officials said Coloradans should avoid fleas, keep pets away from wild rodent habitats, avoid areas where wild rodents live and not touch sick or dead animals.

Officials said children should immediately tell adults if they have had any contact with a wild animal or been bitten by fleas.