Yvonne Ford, 59, came back from a holiday in Morocco in February unaware she had been infected with rabies after a ‘slight scratch’ from a puppy – she sadly died on June 11
The loving gran who died from rabies was on a family holiday to Disney World in Florida two weeks before her tragic death.
Yvonne Ford, 59, came back from Morocco in February unaware that she had been infected after a ‘slight scratch’ from a puppy. The brief contact was enough to cause the first rabies death in the UK since 2018. Her family bravely spoke out to warn other holidaymakers following her death in a Sheffield hospital on June 11. They posted an image of their last day at Disney World in Florida on May 23, just 19 days earlier.
Daughter Robyn Thomson told how her mum, also from Barnsley, had been on a family holiday with them to America. She posted a video of her mum dancing with her granddaughter on June 15 telling followers: “Just under two weeks before we lost my Mum.”
Yvonne was scratched “very slightly” by the puppy while in Morocco four months ago, but was unaware that she had been infected. Robyn told followers: “At the time, she did not think any harm would come of it and didn’t think much of it. After developing a headache she lost the ability to walk, talk, sleep, swallow and ultimately died from the effects of the disease.”
Ms Thomson, 42, a neonatal nurse, said: “We never thought something like this could happen to someone we love. Please take animal bites seriously, vaccinate your pets, and educate those around you.”
Yvonne’s husband Ron, 58, declined to comment. Barnsley NHS Foundation Trust confirmed his wife was diagnosed with rabies. It is a rare but serious infection that is usually caught from the bite or scratch of infected dogs, bats, raccoons and foxes. Although the risk of getting it while travelling is small, rabies is more common in parts of Asia, Africa and Central and South America.
Dr Katherine Russell, of the UK Health Security Agency, said: “If you are bitten, scratched or licked by an animal in a country where rabies is found, you should wash the wound with plenty of soap and water and seek medical advice without delay in order to get post-exposure treatment to prevent rabies.”
The Mirror told of the death and warnings from health agencies yesterday.
The UK has been rabies-free since 1922, when the last indigenous non-fatal case was recorded, with the exception of rabies-like viruses in some wild bat species.
Rabies is especially common in parts of Africa, South and SE Asia, causing 59,000 human deaths each year and untold fear and suffering among local people.
Symptoms of rabies usually take three to 12 weeks to appear. They can appear after a few days or not for several months or years. They include numbness or tingling, hallucinations, acute anxiety, difficulty swallowing or breathing and paralysis.
It is almost always fatal once symptoms appear, but vaccination and early treatment can prevent it. Human cases of rabies in the UK are extremely rare. The last recorded case of rabies in the UK acquired from animals other than bats was in 1902.
There were six cases associated with animal exposures abroad between 2000 and 2024. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said there was no risk to the wider public.
In humans who have been infected, symptoms of rabies appear one to three months after exposure and rapidly develop into hallucinations, delirium and hydrophobia, or fear of water, closely followed by death
Popular tourist destinations like Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and Turkey all carry a high risk of dogs transmitting rabies to people.
Omar Zouhri, 58, was the last person to die in the UK from rabies. He was bitten by a rabid cat while in Morocco. Mr Zouhri, from Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, died in hospital in Oxford on November 4, 2018