Local Officials Confirm Another Case of West Nile Virus
Cape May County has its first confirmed case of West Nile virus. While it is the first in the county, it's just one of a growing number of cases across the state and country.According to the Press of Atlantic City, officials confirmed the West Nile virus sickened a 64-year-old woman last month.
The woman is reportedly still in the hospital recovering.
Atlantic County has so far one confirmed human case this year, while Ocean County has three confirmed cases. The New Jersey Department of Health is reporting seven confirmed cases statewide. By comparison, South Jersey had no reported cases last year.
Last week's death of a 77-year-old Burlington County man was the first attributed to the virus since 2010.
The number of human cases is three times greater than last year, when there seven confirmed cases, none of which resulted in deaths. In 2010, of the 30 confirmed cases, two people died.
In Cape May County, the virus was also found in two birds and 15 mosquito samples collected in the county, according to a press release from Cape May County Freeholder Kristine Gabor.
In Galloway, two mosquito samples and a blackbird tested positive for West Nile in August. Last week, a second mosquito sample from Birch Grove Park in Northfield tested positive for the virus. The first sample tested positive in July.
The Associated Press contributed to this report