In brief: Travelers warned about measles

Inland Northwest residents who passed through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Jan. 6 may have been exposed to a traveler with a confirmed case of measles.

Public health officials said Thursday that the traveler, who was not identified, flew to Seattle from Thailand via Korea on Asiana Flight 272. The traveler became ill and sought medical attention in Seattle on Jan. 9. The diagnosis of measles was confirmed Wednesday by the state laboratory.

People on the same flight as the traveler, or those in the airport between 10 a.m. and noon, were possibly exposed to the disease.

People who are not immunized against measles and may have come in contact with the traveler are urged to contact a doctor.

“Certainly it’s likely that someone from our community could have traveled through Sea-Tac during that time period,” said Julie Graham, spokeswoman for the Spokane Regional Health District.

Measles spreads easily among nonvaccinated or susceptible people and can result in serious infection and illness. Most people born before 1957 had the disease as children, and younger people are routinely inoculated against the disease.

For more information, visit Seattle and King County’s Web site at www.metrokc.gov/health/ measles2007.

Boise

Idaho guardsmen set to return

More than 200 soldiers in the Idaho National Guard will be returning home from Afghanistan next month, Gov. Butch Otter said Thursday.

Members of the 1-183rd Aviation Battalion will begin arriving in Fort Hood, Texas, early next month, after an 18-month deployment that included almost 12 months in Afghanistan.

According to the current demobilization timetable, all the unit’s 265 soldiers are scheduled to be back in Idaho before the end of the month, said Maj. Gen. Larry Lafrenz, commanding general of the Idaho National Guard.

The battalion’s work in Afghanistan included providing aerial gunfire support from AH-64 attack helicopters for troops conducting ground operations, as well as medical care to the local population.

While at Fort Hood, soldiers will complete the processing necessary for release from active duty, and receive information on benefits and services available to them as veterans, before returning home to Idaho.

Spokane

Man’s body found in apartment

Spokane police are investigating a possible homicide after officers responded to a 911 call Thursday and found a man’s body in an apartment near the intersection of Division Street and Gray Court.

The body was found at 139 W. Gray Court, Apt. 201, and has yet to be identified, Cpl. Tom Lee said.

The 911 call came at 4:46 p.m. Thursday from a person who told officers of finding the dead man, after being called by a woman who rented the apartment. The renter was not present when officers arrived.

However, she called Spokane police a short time later from the area of Francis Avenue and Freya Street in northeast Spokane, Lee said. She was driving the victim’s car at the time.

The woman has been detained, and the car has been impounded.

Detectives are seeking a search warrant for the apartment on Gray Court.