California Resident Dies from Leptospirosis After 200 Rats Found in RV Near Berkeley Homeless Camp
A Berkeley, California resident died in May from leptospirosis, a rat-borne bacterial disease, after living in an RV where they had been trapping, feeding, and breeding wild rats — the city's first known human fatality from the disease in over a decade. Nearly 200 rats were removed from the severely infested vehicle before it was towed and destroyed, and a second occupant survived after a lengthy hospitalization. Health officials stress the public risk remains extremely low, as person-to-person transmission is rare, but the cases have prompted Berkeley to expand its outreach and disease-prevention efforts.
Berkeley city manager Paul Buddenhagen disclosed in a June 10 memo to the City Council that one person died and another was hospitalized after contracting leptospirosis, a bacterial disease spread through the urine of infected animals. Both individuals had been living in an RV parked about a mile from the Harrison Street homeless encampment in North Berkeley, where leptospirosis had already been detected in rats and dogs since late 2025. The two occupants had been actively trapping, feeding, and breeding wild rats inside the vehicle, which was also heavily infested with uncaged rodents. Alameda County Vector Control removed nearly 200 rats from the RV before it was towed and destroyed, and subsequent testing found leptospirosis prevalence in surrounding rats exceeded typical urban baselines. Both residents fell ill but delayed seeking medical care for weeks or possibly months, a factor officials believe worsened the severity of their illness. Leptospirosis is treatable with common antibiotics when caught early, but can progress to kidney damage, liver failure, and death if untreated. In response, Berkeley Public Health has shifted from geographic warning zones to a broader focus on high-risk conditions — including rat infestations, standing water, and poor sanitation — and is distributing informational flyers to unhoused and vehicle-dwelling residents within 1.5 miles of the Harrison Street corridor.
What's missing
It is not reported whether the deceased individual was experiencing homelessness or was a housed resident.
How coverage differed
The New York Post framed the story with emphasis on the homeless camp connection and sensational details about rat breeding, while the San Francisco Chronicle and Yahoo Finance (sourcing People magazine) presented the same facts in a more measured public-health context, stressing the extremely low risk to the general public and highlighting city mitigation efforts.
What different sources said
- Yahoo FinanceCenter
Californian Dies from Rare Disease After 'Trapping, Feeding and Breeding Wild Rats' in an RV
- SFGATECenter
Extremely rare tick-borne disease infects person in NorCal
- New York PostRight
Forget hantavirus — another rat disease killed a California resident after 200 rodents found in home
- San Francisco ChronicleCenter
1 dead after rare rat-borne disease surfaces in Berkeley
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