REDDING, Calif. (AP) - A 36-year-old Northern California man infected with a rare, flesh-eating bacteria has died.

Shasta Regional Medical Center spokeswoman Karen Hoyt says the man died at the Redding hospital on Sunday. She declined further comment to the Record Searchlight of Redding (http://bit.ly/Tbpkwp), citing patient confidentiality.

The newspaper reports that Shasta County public health officials confirmed the death on Thursday although they did not say how the man became infected with necrotizing fasciitis (NECK-ro-TIE-zing FA-sigh-tus).

The disease is caused when a deadly bacteria germ spreads a tissue-killing toxin after invading the body, typically through a minor cut.

Shasta County Public Health Officer Andrew Deckert says the county has probably had a few other cases in the past, but none he can recall that were reported.

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