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Nipah Virus Claims Nurse's Life in West Bengal
12 Feb
Summary
- A nurse infected with Nipah virus in Barasat died February 12, 2026.
- The second Nipah case, a male nurse, recovered and was discharged.
- Over 120 contacts were tested, all returning negative for the virus.
Tragically, one of the two nurses diagnosed with the Nipah virus at a Barasat private hospital in West Bengal has died. The infected nurse passed away on the afternoon of February 12, 2026. Her colleague, who also tested positive for the Nipah virus earlier in January, has recovered and was discharged from the hospital last week after showing improved health.
The two nurses had presented with Nipah-like symptoms and tested positive in January, subsequently falling into a coma. While the female nurse showed signs of recovery towards the end of January and was taken off the ventilator, she developed a secondary lung infection and was placed back on life support shortly before her death.
Authorities implemented strict contact tracing measures, isolating and testing over 120 individuals who had come into contact with the infected nurses. Fortunately, all these tests returned negative, suggesting the virus's spread was contained to the initial two cases. This situation follows a reported Nipah virus death in Bangladesh on February 6, 2026, though the World Health Organization has stated these outbreaks are not related.
