A resident of the Tel Aviv area was diagnosed with measles after returning to Israel from London prior to Friday, April 18, the Health Ministry reported on Sunday evening.
According to an epidemiological investigation conducted by the Tel Aviv District Health Office, the patient was potentially contagious while present at several public locations. These included El Al flight LY318, which departed from London’s Heathrow Airport at 22:00 on Thursday, April 17, and landed at Ben-Gurion Airport at 04:50 the following morning.
Later that day, the individual took a train from Ben-Gurion Airport to Tel Aviv University station at 06:00, and then boarded bus line 45 toward Tagore Street in Tel Aviv at 06:40.
On Saturday, April 19, the patient visited an escape room at 23 Af’al Street in Petah Tikva between 14:30 and 16:00, and dined that evening at Meat Bar restaurant at 4 HaSadnaot Street in Herzliya between 19:30 and 21:30.
The Health Ministry urged anyone who was at these locations during the specified times to confirm their vaccination status.
Measles is a highly contagious disease
Individuals aged one and above should have received two doses of the measles vaccine, spaced one month apart.
Those born before 1957 are typically considered immune due to natural exposure during childhood. Children under six should receive vaccinations through Tipat Halav clinics, while those aged seven and above should complete them through their HMOs.
Prof. Yechiel Schlesinger, dean of the Faculty of Life and Health Sciences at the Lev Academic Center and director of the Wilf Children’s Hospital at Shaare Zedek Medical Center, warned that low vaccination rates could lead to a widespread outbreak.
“All it takes to spark an outbreak is one infected person arriving here,” he said. “The only way to stop an outbreak in Israel is through vaccination.”
He noted a sharp decline in vaccination coverage across the population, which has already led to a resurgence of preventable diseases.
“Every day I see children in the hospital suffering from illnesses we thought had disappeared, such as polio,” he said, adding that measles, unlike rubella or mumps, is a serious illness that may result in hospitalization, complications, and even death.