Airport Worker in Germany Dies of Malaria

An employee at Frankfurt Airport has died of malaria after a total of six workers contracted the disease. German public health authorities believe mosquitoes carrying the parasite were brought in on an airplane arriving from tropical regions.

The remaining five infected employees are currently receiving medical care, according to the BBC.

Airport operator Fraport expressed regret over the death and has told employees what steps to take if symptoms appear. Mosquito traps have also been installed at the airport, and the captured mosquitoes are being analyzed in a laboratory to determine their exact species and origin.

The Robert Koch Institute stressed that malaria transmission directly at a German airport is extremely rare. The greatest risk in such cases is delayed diagnosis, since infected individuals have no travel history, which can lead to a more severe course of the disease.

A similarly rare case of infection was also recorded at Frankfurt Airport in 2023.

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