LEVITTOWN, N.Y. — A Long Island woman was found by police with her skin crawling with nearly invisible bloodsucking parasites from an infested bird’s nest in her home.
Nassau County police said they were called to the Levittown home of 45-year-old Nina Bradica on Thursday night. They said she was infected with bird mites, a highly contagious condition she contracted from a nest inside a bathroom vent.
Bird mites are half a millimeter long and usually can’t be seen without magnification. Symptoms of human infestation include pinprick bites, red bumps, intense itching and a crawling sensation on the skin.
Firefighters and hazardous-materials officers put the woman in a protective suit and took her to the hospital, where she was put in a quarantine unit. She’s being observed and treated.
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