{
  "id": "2026-07-17-university-of-washington-university-way-rabid-bat",
  "slug": "university-of-washington-university-way-rabid-bat-2026-07-17",
  "institution": {
    "name": "University of Washington",
    "shortName": "UW",
    "state": "WA",
    "type": "public-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "UW Alert",
    "enrollment": 60000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2026-07-17",
    "type": "disease-outbreak",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "resolution": "confirmed-threat",
    "headline": "Rabid bat on University Way prompts contact medical evaluation advisory",
    "headlinePublic": "Rabid bat on University Way prompts contact medical evaluation advisory",
    "summary": "On July 17, 2026, the [UW Alert Blog](https://emergency.uw.edu/2026/07/17/uw-advisory-rabid-bat-found-wednesday-on-university-way-ne/) relayed a Public Health Seattle & King County announcement that a rabid bat was found on University Way NE and that anyone with contact should seek medical evaluation.",
    "outcome": "PHSKC medical-evaluation and rabies-prevention advisory issued for anyone with bat contact."
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2026-07-17T19:08:59-07:00",
      "channel": "multi-channel",
      "verbatimText": "Public Health Seattle & King County (PHSKC) announced today that a rabid bat was found on a sidewalk on University Way NE between NE 41st Street and NE 42nd Street and is advising that anyone who may have had contact with it — even if not bitten — seek medical attention.\n\nFrom PHSKC:\n\nAnyone who might have had physical contact with this bat (even if not bitten) could be at risk and should seek medical evaluation immediately or call Public Health at 206-296-4774 to determine if rabies preventative treatment is necessary.\n\nRabies is a life-threatening disease but can be prevented if treatment is given before symptoms appear.\n\nSee the full PHSKC announcement on its website.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://emergency.uw.edu/2026/07/17/uw-advisory-rabid-bat-found-wednesday-on-university-way-ne/",
      "sourceDescription": "UW Alert Blog (official emergency.uw.edu)",
      "annotations": [
        "Body has no clock time; timestamp is the WordPress published time from the official blog post (2026-07-17T19:08:59-07:00)."
      ],
      "characterCount": 679
    }
  ],
  "context": "UW published a public-health advisory on the official [UW Alert Blog](https://emergency.uw.edu/) relaying [PHSKC](https://publichealthinsider.com/2026/07/17/rabid-bat-found-in-seattle-near-the-university-of-washington/) guidance after a rabid bat was found on University Way NE near campus.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "Official UW advisory with embedded PHSKC medical guidance",
    "Impact language: rabies described as life-threatening but preventable with timely treatment"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "UW Advisory: Rabid bat found Wednesday on University Way NE",
      "url": "https://emergency.uw.edu/2026/07/17/uw-advisory-rabid-bat-found-wednesday-on-university-way-ne/",
      "type": "official-archive",
      "accessDate": "2026-07-21"
    },
    {
      "title": "Rabid bat found in Seattle near the University of Washington (PHSKC)",
      "url": "https://publichealthinsider.com/2026/07/17/rabid-bat-found-in-seattle-near-the-university-of-washington/",
      "type": "official-archive",
      "accessDate": "2026-07-21"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "rabies",
    "bat",
    "public-health",
    "uw-alert",
    "washington",
    "2026"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-07-21",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-21",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}