“The most contagious infection that we know of”: Local doctors speak out after suspected measles case appears in NKY
By Danielle Dindak & Kurt Knue
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WILLIAMSTOWN, Kentucky (WLWT) — Officials are working to get the word out after a suspected case of measles was reported in Northern Kentucky this week.
The Northern Kentucky Health Department tells WLWT that an unvaccinated child traveled with adults from out of state to visit the Ark Encounter in Grant County on Monday.
The child is believed by health officials to have had measles, with potentially as many as a thousand or more people said to have been visiting the Ark on Monday.
Additionally, the child had also previously stayed at the nearby Holiday Inn Express in Dry Ridge between Dec. 28 and 30.
Doctors warn that measles is highly contagious, and is a disease that has made a resurgence in recent years due to declining vaccination rates throughout the U.S.
“When I hear about measles exposure, I think about how measles is the most contagious infection that we know of to date,” said Dr. Tracy Cable, an infectious disease specialist at UC Medical Center.
Cable added that most of those who become infected with measles may not feel or see symptoms for weeks. “The incubation period between the exposure and when they develop symptoms, most commonly it’s 11 or 12 days, but it could be up to 21 days,” said Cable.
With over 2,000 cases reported throughout 2025 in the U.S., the epicenter of this most recent possible outbreak is localized to Grant County, with a specific focus on one of the busiest tourist destinations across Kentucky.
“You know, anywhere between 800 to a couple thousand people were there on the 29th, so we’re trying to reach out to all those people and let them know,” said Skip Tate of the Northern Kentucky Health Department. “And so, that’s a lot of people. There’s the potential for really widespread passing on of the disease.”
Experts add that measles can can be transmitted through the air, with the disease able to remain airborne for up to two hours after an infected person leaves the room.
“So, if this family maybe sat down at a table to get something to eat and they were talking — or the child coughed or something like that, the next family that may have come in and used that table may not have had direct contact with them — but they still were exposed to the disease,” said Tate.
Doctors say that the best way to protect yourself and loved ones against measles is to get vaccinated.
“Twenty percent of the people who actually get measles end up in the hospital,” said Tate. “Because it can advance to other issues like pneumonia or like cephalitis. It can cause hearing problems and respiratory problems that they have to carry with them for the rest of their life.”
On Friday, a representative with Ark Encounter released a statement that said that the attraction’s management was continuing to monitor the situation, and that they have reached out to guests who were present at the Ark on Monday.
“We have been notified by the Northern Kentucky Health Department that a child who visited the Ark Encounter on Monday has been diagnosed with measles,” the statement read in part. “For unvaccinated guests in attendance on Monday, the email requested that they promptly contact their personal physician for guidance, indicating that measles can be contagious before symptoms appear. That same information was shared with Ark staff. 775 emails were sent to guest families who visited Monday.”
“We pray that the child affected is doing well,” the statement concluded. “We have not heard of reports that other guests have contracted measles.”
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