Photo: Massachusetts Department of Public Health
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — State health officials continue sounding the alarm about the risk of mosquitoes.
On Tuesday, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) announced the first human case of West Nile Virus (WNV) and the first animal case of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE). A man in his 40’s was exposed to WNV in Hampden County, while a horse tested positive for EEE in Plymouth, Mass.
State officials announced that mosquito samples started testing positive for the two diseases back in early July and have continued to alert at-risk communities as more samples come back positive.
“Populations of mosquitoes that can carry and spread these viruses are large this year and we continue to see increases in the number of EEE- and WNV-positive mosquito samples throughout the state. Residents should continue to take precautions to avoid mosquito bites,” said Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD.
As of Wednesday morning, Plymouth, Carver and Middleborough are listed as the communities most at risk for EEE cases. For WNV, parts of Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Bristol, Essex, Hampden, Plymouth and Worcester counties are at moderate risk.
There were six human cases of WNV and no animal cases in 2023. There have not been any human cases of EEE since 2020.
WBZ NewsRadio's Jay Willett (@JayWillettWBZ) reports.
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