Bat exposes person and pet to rabies in Sumter County

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control says it has referred a Sumter County resident to a private health care provider after the resident was potentially exposed to rabies from a bat.

The resident who lives in the Dalzell area awoke to find the bat flying around the resident’s home Monday.

Two bats were found in the home, DHEC spokesman Jim Beasley said in a statement released Thursday. One tested positive for rabies on Wednesday, Beasley said. The victim's dog was also in the bedroom at the time of the exposure but was current on its rabies vaccination and only required a booster and a 45-day quarantine, he said.

There were 139 confirmed cases of rabies in animals during 2014 in South Carolina. There have been 71 confirmed cases in animals statewide this year, Beasley said. The bat was the fourth animal to test positive in 2015 from Sumter County. There were two animals that tested positive for rabies in that county in 2014, he said.

From staff reports

This story was originally published June 18, 2015 at 3:37 PM.