measles exposure – A passenger with measles flew through Los Angeles International Airport last week, potentially exposing people inside LAX and at a nearby hotel during specific hours. The warning comes as World Cup crowds bring a surge of travelers into Los Angeles and the Bay
For a second time this month, health officials are asking people to rethink a simple routine: getting through an airport.
In Los Angeles. officials said a person infected with measles flew on a transpacific route and passed through Los Angeles International Airport last week. potentially exposing other passengers while the virus was contagious. This is the fourth measles case confirmed in a passenger passing through LAX while possibly contagious this year. and the sixth case overall reported by L.A. County health officials.
The latest event is pinned to a precise day and time. On June 11, a person with measles arrived on Cathay Pacific Airlines Flight 884, landing at LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal. Health officials said people who were in the terminal between 10 a.m. and noon may have been exposed. The person then traveled to the Hilton Los Angeles Airport Hotel at 5711 W. Century Blvd., where exposures may have occurred between 11:15 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.
Anyone who was present in those locations during those windows “may be at risk of developing measles from seven to 21 days after being exposed,” L.A. County health officials said.
Dr. Muntu Davis, the L.A. County health officer. tied the warning directly to the summer travel push and the crowds around the FIFA World Cup. which has brought more international visitors to Los Angeles. “With summer travel underway and Los Angeles County welcoming large gatherings and international visitors during World Cup events. the risk of exposure to infectious diseases may increase. ” Davis said. He urged residents and visitors to confirm their immunity and to get the measles. mumps and rubella vaccine if needed—especially before traveling and attending crowded events.
World Cup matches have been underway in Inglewood and Santa Clara. and health officials said people should be alert for symptoms of measles. They also urged anyone who is sick to stay home. cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue. upper sleeve or elbow. consider wearing a mask indoors—especially in crowded places—and wash hands with soap and warm water.
The disease can move fast. Health officials said symptoms include a rash that can appear three to five days after onset of illness. along with cough. runny nose and red and watery eyes. and a fever that can be higher than 101 degrees. They said the “measles rash” typically begins at the face and spreads down the body.
Measles spreads when an infected person coughs or sneezes. releasing virus into the air and leaving it on surfaces for hours after the person has left a room. Health officials said infected people can spread the virus up to four days before they develop a rash and up to four days after the rash appears.
L.A. County officials said people who were fully vaccinated in the past. or who had measles before. are probably protected. but should still monitor for symptoms. People who are unimmunized or whose measles vaccination status is unknown are at higher risk and should monitor for symptoms closely through July 2. the health department said. Officials said other potential exposures include nearby health facilities that are contacting patients and employees directly.
The LAX warning arrives as travel spikes across the region. More than 150,000 domestic and international travelers are expected from June 12 through July 10 in L.A. County, which is hosting eight World Cup matches. Fan festivals and other large gatherings are also being held for the event.
In the Bay Area. officials issued a related alert over the weekend after a measles-infected passenger arrived at San Francisco International Airport on June 8 and potentially exposed others while moving through passport control. customs and the international bagging area between 8:30 and 11 a.m. That same day, officials also flagged potential exposures in San José—between 8 and 10 p.m. at the Trader Joe’s at 635 Coleman Ave. and at the International Halal Market at 960 E. Santa Clara St.
Doctors have warned that measles is especially dangerous for babies who are too young to be vaccinated.
In Los Angeles County, officials in September reported the death of a school-age child from a complication of measles. The child had been infected as an infant when they were too young to be vaccinated. and years later developed subacute sclerosing panencephalitis. or SSPE. a fatal disease that targets the brain. According to the California Department of Public Health, at least 17 people in California have died from SSPE since 1998. Health officials also said at least two babies have been infected with measles in California so far this year.
In April. San Francisco reported that a baby under 1 year old had been infected during an international trip. and said it was the city’s first measles case since 2019. Officials said the infant’s family was all vaccinated. Later that month, the Orange County Health Care Agency confirmed another infant who had traveled internationally contracted measles. Orange County reported a confirmed measles case in a toddler in January; that youngster had not traveled before getting infected.
The measles vaccine is recommended in two doses—first at 12 to 15 months of age and again between 4 and 6 years of age. according to the CDC. California health officials say that if babies or toddlers are traveling internationally. children ages 1 to 3 should get their second dose of the measles vaccine. The second dose can be given at least 28 days after the first.
Babies age 6 to 11 months who are traveling internationally should get one dose of the measles vaccine. according to the CDC. and then two doses after their first birthday based on the routine schedule. California’s guidance also says parents of babies in this age group who are traveling to a “domestic measles outbreak area” should consult with a healthcare provider about getting a measles vaccination for their infant.
Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, a UC San Francisco infectious diseases expert, pointed to why the timing matters. He said when the vaccine is given at 6 months of age. 76% developed protective antibodies against measles. and when given at 8 to 9 months. 85% developed antibodies. “This is in contrast to infants 12 months and older, where more than 95% develop protective antibodies.”.
This year’s warnings are coming against a backdrop of broader outbreaks across the Americas.
Measles cases in North and South America are up sharply this year. The Pan American Health Organization. a United Nations-backed health agency. warned that increasing measles transmission combined with large international events like the World Cup creates conditions for the disease to spread. It said that so far this year there have been more than 20. 000 measles cases across North and South America—quadruple the number from the same period in 2025. The agency said 25 measles deaths have been reported in the Americas this year, including 13 in Mexico and 12 in Guatemala.
Travel has helped measles spread to sports competitions before. In 2007, a report published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention described an outbreak around the Little League World Series in Pennsylvania after a 12-year-old boy on the Japanese team had been exposed to a sibling with a measles-like illness but traveled anyway despite having a sore throat and malaise. The boy had an unknown vaccination status. and the report said none of
the three people infected in that incident had documentation of measles vaccination or had previously contracted measles. The infected included a 53-year-old woman who sat one row in front of the boy on a flight from Detroit to Baltimore; a 25-year-old man who was working as a federal airport officer in the Detroit airport customs area on the same day; and a 40-year-old man who met the boy and later suffered a seizure. a fever
of 105.7 degrees and pneumonia before recovering.
In the U.S., officials say the situation is more volatile now than in recent decades. Until recently, cases in the U.S. were rare, and the disease was considered officially eliminated nationwide in 2000. That status is now in jeopardy, with annual caseloads at levels not seen in more than three decades. The largest number of measles cases nationally in recent history was in 1990. when 27. 808 were reported; the number shrank to 9. 643 the next year and 2. 126 in 1992. before sinking to as few as a few dozen per year in the early 2000s.
Last year, 2,288 cases were reported. This year, which is not even halfway done, already has 2,073 cases reported, based on CDC data.
Mexico, which is jointly hosting the FIFA World Cup this year with the U.S. and Canada, had 11,889 measles cases reported over a six-month period ending in April, according to figures referenced by health officials. Canada has reported 1,071 measles cases so far this year.
In California. there have been 50 confirmed measles infections so far this year. with 47 in individuals who either had not been vaccinated or had unknown vaccination status. according to the state Department of Public Health. It is the highest number in a single calendar year since 2019, when 72 cases were reported. The state has also recorded cases in Orange. Riverside. Santa Clara. Sacramento. San Francisco. San Mateo. Placer. Shasta and Napa counties so far this year.
With the windows of potential exposure already identified—10 a.m. to noon at LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal on June 11, and 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the Hilton Los Angeles Airport Hotel—officials are pushing people to act before symptoms ever appear. They want travelers and eventgoers to check their vaccination status now. and to watch carefully over the seven-to-21-day range after possible exposure.
The message is plain: measles spreads very easily, and in the weeks when airports and stadiums are busiest, health officials say the risk rises fastest for those without protection—especially infants who are too young to be inoculated.
measles LAX Los Angeles County World Cup vaccine MMR infectious disease San Francisco International Airport exposure