--- description: They're calling it Bourbon virus title: New Killer Virus Found in Kansas image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Infectious Disease](/tag/infectious-disease/) ## Infectious Disease Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # New Killer Virus Found in Kansas by [NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 21, 2015 2:07 PM CUT by [NBC News](/author/nbc-news/) ## NBC News Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 21, 2015 2:07 PM CUT Scientists are reporting on a new virus, never seen before anywhere, that apparently killed a Kansas man last year. They’re calling it Bourbon virus, after the county in Kansas where the previously healthy man lived. He’d been bitten by ticks before he got sick so doctors believe the virus is carried by ticks. “We were not looking for a new virus,” said Charles Hunt, Kansas state epidemiologist, who helped report on the new virus. “We are surprised. We really don’t know much about this virus. It’s important to find out more from a public health perspective. It is possible that other persons have been infected with this and not known it?”… [Read the rest of the story from our partners at NBC News](http://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/new-killer-virus-found-kansas-n309961?cid=par-time-article%5F20150221 "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3717617/kansas-bourbon-virus/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3717617/kansas-bourbon-virus/"},"headline":"New Killer Virus Found in Kansas","datePublished":"2015-02-21T14:07:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T04:36:14.614Z","description":"They're calling it Bourbon virus","url":"https://time.com/3717617/kansas-bourbon-virus/","keywords":["Infectious Disease"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NBC News","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/nbc-news/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/infectious-disease/","name":"Infectious Disease"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3717617/kansas-bourbon-virus/","name":"New Killer Virus Found in Kansas"}}]}] ```