iStockphoto / Angel Di Bilio
The Lightning in a Bottle EDM festival at Buena Vista Lake near Bakersfield, California brought some of the EDM industry’s biggest acts out including Skrillex, Labrinth, Fatboy Slim, M.I.A., and many others and aside from the people being hospitalized with rare cases of Valley Fever it seems to have been a resounding success.
It’s those hospitalizations, however, that has the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) after 3 people were hospitalized from Valley Fever and two others have fallen ill with the rare affliction.
Valley Fever, also known as ‘coccidioidomycosis’ or just ‘cocci,’ includes symptoms of cough, fever, fatigue, difficulty breathing, and chest pain. And it is believed these people contracted the fever while traveling through Kern County, California (Bakersfield, Edwards AFB, etc).
The CDPH shared a press release on Valley Fever, the illnesses, and what causes it. CDPH says it is “an infectious disease caused by the Coccidioides fungus that grows in the soil and dirt in some areas of California” but luckily it is not a disease that spreads from person to person or from person to animal.
CDPH went on to say “most people exposed to this fungus do not develop Valley fever, the fungus can infect the lungs and cause respiratory symptoms, including cough, difficulty breathing, fever, and tiredness or fatigue.” They added “in rare cases, the Valley fever fungus can spread to other parts of the body and cause severe disease.”
Contracting this disease primarily happens when people are exposed to dust/dirt particles carrying the fungus sports.
If we’re being honest here this sounds like the potential plot of a future The Last of Us episode which I know mirrored the actual video game very closely but at some point the paths will deviate (see HBO’s Game of Thrones) and at that point I wouldn’t be surprised to see sickness spreading through dust particles carrying infectious sports.
According to the CDPH, cases of Valley Fever have been rising in 2023 and 2024 and are primarily concentrated to the San Joaquin Valley and Central Coast areas of California. They are urging anyone who was in that area and is experiencing symptoms lasting longer than a week to visit a healthcare provider.