Ontario child dies after contracting rabies [Video]

An Ontario child has died after coming in contact with a rabid bat, a health official confirmed on Wednesday.

“We’ve had one unfortunate death from rabies which also highlights the fact that rabies is still an entity. It’s still circulating,” Dr. Malcolm Lock, the acting medical officer of health for Haldimand-Norfolk County, said during a health board meeting.

The nearby Brant County Health Unit (BCHU) confirmed the infection in early September. According to Public Health Ontario, it was the first case of domestic human rabies recorded since 1967.

“Unfortunately, the case that we had, it was a child, and basically they woke up with a bat in the room,” Lock explained. “The parents looked at the child and didn’t see any signs of a bite or scratches or saliva, and didn’t seek… the rabies vaccine. So unfortunately, that child is now deceased.”

While the BCHU previously confirmed the resident had …