ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Three children from the same family in Buncombe County have tested positive for measles, marking the county’s first confirmed cases of the highly contagious disease in decades, local health officials said Tuesday.

Buncombe County Health and Human Services said the siblings live in the same household and had recently traveled to Spartanburg County, South Carolina, where a large measles outbreak is ongoing. The visit occurred about one to two weeks before the children became ill. Officials declined to release additional details to protect the family’s privacy.

Public health officials said people who were in the Mission Hospital emergency department waiting room at 509 Biltmore Ave. between 2 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 4, may have been exposed to the virus. The county health department is working with the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services and Mission Hospital to identify and contact individuals who may have been exposed and to assess whether they have immunity.

Health officials said laboratory testing is not recommended for people who were exposed unless they develop symptoms, which include fever and rash. Anyone who believes they may have been exposed during the specified time period is asked to call the Buncombe County Public Health Department at 828-250-6100 to assess risk and receive guidance from a communicable disease nurse.

The Buncombe County cases come amid a rise in measles across North Carolina and the nation. State health officials reported the first confirmed measles case in North Carolina this year on June 24, 2025, involving a child who traveled through Forsyth and Guilford counties. A second case was confirmed in Polk County on Dec. 31, 2025, and officials also reported measles exposure in Gaston County after an infected person traveled while contagious.

Nationally, 2,065 confirmed measles cases had been reported by 44 jurisdictions as of Dec. 31, 2025, according to state health officials.

Public health leaders urged residents to review their immunization records and ensure they are up to date on the measles-mumps-rubella, or MMR, vaccine. Two doses of the vaccine provide strong protection against measles. People born before 1957 are generally considered immune because they were likely exposed before the vaccine became widely available.

Measles is a highly contagious, vaccine-preventable disease that spreads through coughing and sneezing. The virus can remain in the air for up to two hours after an infected person leaves an area. Symptoms typically appear seven to 14 days after exposure, but can take up to 21 days to develop, and include high fever, cough, runny nose, red and watery eyes, and a characteristic red, blotchy rash that usually begins on the face.

An infected person can spread measles from four days before a rash appears through four days after it begins. Health officials warn that measles can lead to serious complications, particularly in young children, including pneumonia, brain swelling and, in rare cases, death.

“Now that measles has entered our county, we need to come together again to keep ourselves, our family members, our friends, our neighbors and everyone in all our communities safe and healthy,” Buncombe County Public Health Director Dr. Ellis Matheson said in a statement. “Please check to make sure you and your family members are immune to measles. If not, contact your health care provider or the Buncombe County Immunizations Clinic to get vaccinated.”

The MMR vaccine is available through primary care providers and at the Buncombe County Health and Human Services Immunization Clinic at 40 Coxe Ave. in Asheville. The clinic accepts walk-ins on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8 to 11:30 a.m., and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m. The clinic will be closed from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7, and will reopen later that morning.