Arizona resident dies from pneumonic plague, health officials say

The person, whose age, name and gender have not been released, died at Flagstaff medical center. Photograph: Matt York/AP

A person has died from pneumonic plague in Coconino county, Arizona, the first such death there since 2007 – though officials are saying the death is unrelated to a recent die-off of prairie dogs in the area that may also be plague-related.

Health officials in Coconino county, which incorporates part of the Grand Canyon national park and lies north of Flagstaff, confirmed the death on 11 July.