An American has died from eastern equine encephalitis, a rare and deadly disease spread by mosquitoes.
The disease has been ripping through parts of the Northeast, placing 10 counties in Massachusetts on high alert before spreading and killing a person in New Hampshire.
Last week, it was reported that an 80-year-old man in Massachusetts tested positive for the rare virus, sparking public health concerns.
Officials then discovered the disease in mosquitoes across the state and warned residents to limit their time outdoors.
The virus then started appearing in neighboring states, with cases popping up in Vermont and New Hampshire, where an unidentified victim was pronounced dead.
The resident, who was only identified as an adult by the New Hampshire state health department, had initially been hospitalized with severe central nervous system problems caused by the virus.
The 80-year-old man in Massachusetts remains hospitalized and is “courageously battling” the virus, according to Oxford’s town manager Jennifer Callahan.
While EEE infections are rare, one-third of those infected die from the virus, according to statistics gathered by the CDC.
After the death was confirmed Tuesday, officials made a chilling warning that cases could be on the rise.
“We believe there is an elevated risk for EEEV infections this year in New England given the positive mosquito samples identified,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan.
Meanwhile, A town has been placed under nighttime lockdown as fears around a disabling disease spread by mosquitoes ramp up.
Almost a dozen communities have also been designated as high or critical risk for the illness, after a man tested positive for it earlier this month and disease-carrying critters were spotted in the area.
Eastern equine encephalitis is a rare but potentially deadly virus that’s spread from the bites of infected mosquitoes.
Known as EEE or ‘triple E’, the virus got its name after first being spotted in horses.
But disease can be spread to people by mosquitoes who pick up the virus from infected animals.
There are currently no vaccines or medicines available to treat EEE, which about 30 per cent of those infected die from, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Only a few cases tend to be reported in the United States each year, the CDC says.
But fears around the virus have placed 10 counties in Massachusetts on high alert.
The state’s health department announced on August 16 that a man in his 80s had caught the virus in the town of Oxford.
It marked the first human case found in Massachusetts since 2020, after an outbreak saw 17 people infected and caused the deaths of seven.
New York City is planning to spray pesticides to help prevent the spread of mosquitoes, and potential diseases.
The announcement comes days after Dr Anthony Fauci, former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director and the government’s top infectious disease official during the pandemic, was hospitalized with West Nile virus.
Dr Fauci, 83, spent around a week in the hospital after developing fever, chills, and severe fatigue. He believes he contracted West Nile in the backyard of his Washington DC home, and is expected to make a full recovery, CBS News’ chief medical correspondent Dr. Jonathan LaPook tweeted on Saturday.
In New York City, the first cases of West Nile virus were reported a week ago in Queens and Manhattan. Four people were diagnosed and three hospitalized.
West Nile virus isn’t the only mosquito-borne illness New Yorkers have to worry about.
Last Wednesday, several areas of Massachusetts were placed under voluntary curfew after one elderly man contracted the dangerous and often-fatal Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, and was hospitalized.
One case has been found in both Vermont and New Jersey, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
