NurseWeek

West Nile virus found in Rhode Island

Wire Services
August 15, 2000


	You've read the article. Now tell us what you think. Related Sites American Mosquito Control Association National Encephalitis Foundation USGS information on West Nile virus

Warwick, R.I. Environmental officials announced Monday they will spray insecticide over a two-mile radius where officials discovered a dead crow infected with the West Nile virus, signaling the first time the virus has been found in Rhode Island.

Trucks will spray more than 200 miles of streets as early as Tuesday night. State health officials said the discovery did not shock them because the virus already has been detected in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey.No one in Rhode Island has been infected.

However, three New York City residents still are recovering from bouts with the virus, which can result in encephalitis or meningitis. Seven people died last summer after contracting the virus in the New York metropolitan area.

The virus is transmitted to humans from the bite of infected mosquitoes.

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