Briton dies from rabies after being bitten by cat on holiday in Morocco

Public Health England issues warning after UK resident's death

Jemaa el-Fnaa square in Marrakech, Morocco, is a popular attraction for tourists (Rex Features)

A British citizen has died from rabies after being bitten by a cat while visiting Morocco.

Public Health England (PHE) issued a warning to travellers on Monday following the UK resident’s death.

It said there was “no risk to the wider public in relation to this case” but health workers and close family and friends were being assessed and offered vaccination “as a precautionary measure”.

No more details have been released about the case.

Rabies does not circulate in either wild or domestic animals in the UK, but the disease is common in Asia and Africa and can be passed to humans through injuries such as bites and scratches.

Five UK residents were infected with rabies after “animal exposures abroad” between 2000 and 2017, said PHE.

Mary Ramsay, head of immunisations at the body, said the latest case was “an important reminder of the precautions people should take when travelling to countries where rabies is present.”

“If you are bitten, scratched or licked by an animal you must wash the wound or site of exposure with plenty of soap and water and seek medical advice without delay,” she added.

PHE warns visitors to countries where rabies is endemic to avoid contact with dogs, cats and other animals where possible, and to seek advice about the need for rabies vaccination before travelling.

The rabies vaccine is highly effective at preventing the disease if given promptly after exposure.

Deaths from rabies are extremely rare in the UK.

The last reported case of rabies in the UK had previously been in 2012, when a British grandmother died after being bitten by a dog while on holiday in India.

No human cases of infection from animals in Britain other than bats have been reported since 1902.

The last known infection from an animal in the UK was in 2002, when a 56-year-old bat handler died of the disease in Scotland. He had been bitten by a Daubenton’s bat several weeks earlier.

There are no documented instances of direct transmission of rabies between humans.