The Ohio Department of Health reports a Hamilton County man has died from West Nile Virus.
The 76 year old man had been hospitalized with encephalitis and is the first person in Ohio to die from West Nile Virus this year. It's unclear if he was one of two cases Hamilton County Public Healthreported last week from the western side of town.
So far this year 49 Ohioans have contracted West Nile Virus and there have been nearly 1,000 positive mosquito samples. The Department of Healthsays it is continuing to see growing numbers of human cases and urges people to remain vigilant and take all reasonable precautions to protect themselves against mosquito bites.
The percentage of mosquitoes testing positive has been higher than any year since 2002. By the end of that year the Department of Health says there were 441 cases and 31 fatalities.
