5 in Ukraine hospitalized with suspected anthrax from cattle

MOSCOW – Ukraine’s Health Ministry says five people have been hospitalized with suspected anthrax and are thought to have contracted the disease while slaughtering cattle.

The ministry said in a statement Tuesday that the patients slaughtered cattle in the village of Minialivka, in the southern Odesa region.

It said the village was put under quarantine and medical teams were checking if other local residents came into contract with the infected cattle.

Anthrax spores can survive for a long time in soil and endanger grazing livestock. Ukrainian officials have reported a few cases of anthrax in several regions over the past decade.