According to information from The California Department of Health's West Nile Virus website, an 88-year-old woman from Kern County is the first reported fatality from West Nile virus (WNV) this year, Dr. Ron Chapman, director of the California Department of Public Health, announced today.
West Nile Virus - Deadly to humans and horses
Three new West Nile Virus positive horses were reported in California this week and four new WNV human cases were reported, including one fatality.
There were 3 new WNV positive horses reported in California this week from the following counties: Fresno (1), Glenn (1), and San Joaquin (1). These are the first WNV positive horses from Fresno, Glenn, and San Joaquin counties this year. 4 horses from 4 counties have tested positive for WNV in 2012.
There were 4 new WNV human cases reported in California this week from the following counties: Kern (1), Orange (1), and Stanislaus (2). This is the first WNV human case from Orange County this year. There has been 1 WNV human fatality reported in California this week from Kern (1) county. 11 human cases from 6 counties have tested positive for WNV in 2012.
So far, the following counties in California have reported incidents of West Nile virus: Butte, Colusa, Contra Costa, Fresno, Glenn, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Merced, Orange, Placer, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tulare, Ventura, Yolo, and Yuba.
There were 74 new WNV positive dead birds reported in California this week with the first WNV positive dead bird from San Bernardino County this year and the first indication of WNV from Colusa County this year. In all, 567 dead birds from 23 counties have tested positive for WNV in 2012.
The California Department of Health is warning horse owners and people who may be bitten by mosquitoes to take precautions that help prevent West Nile Virus creating havoc for humans and horses.