Mongoose bite triggers first rabies death of 2026

Jacobabad woman dies after failing to receive anti-rabies vaccine

KARACHI:

A 42-year-old woman has died of rabies following a mongoose bite, marking the first reported rabies death of 2026 linked to such an incident, health officials said on Thursday.

According to a spokesperson for the Indus Hospital, the woman belonged to Jacobabad and had been bitten by a mongoose around two weeks earlier. However, she did not seek medical treatment nor receive an anti-rabies vaccination after the incident.

Doctors said the absence of timely post-exposure prophylaxis proved fatal, as rabies remains nearly 100 per cent preventable if treated promptly after a bite.

Aftab Gohar confirmed that this is the first documented rabies death of the year caused by a mongoose bite.

Hospital officials further reported that rabies has continued to claim lives in the country, with nine deaths recorded at Indus Hospital so far in 2026.