Merced sees its first fatality from West Nile

By Scott Jason
Merced Sun-Star

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MERCED — A Merced man has died from the West Nile virus, the first time a county resident has been killed by the mosquito-borne disease.

The Merced resident and the death of a Fresno County man, also reported Thursday, are the first West Nile fatalities in California this year, officials said.

Stanislaus County has reported six people infected with the virus this year, including four with neurological symptoms, but no fatalities.

Allan Inman, manager of the Merced County Mosquito Abatement District, said his office would increase spraying in light of the death, which was announced Thursday.

West Nile is a mosquito-borne disease that began in Africa and the Middle East. It has been in the United States since 1999. Although most people who develop the virus display no symptoms, a tiny percentage get neurological symptoms, and a few die.

The death is the first case of a person in the county contracting the disease this year.

The victim lived in downtown Merced, which hasn't been considered a hotbed for mosquito activity because of the urban landscape, Inman explained. North Merced, with its open fields, is considered a ripe place for the disease.

"We are frankly puzzled by this," Inman said. "It just goes to show that all it takes is one infected mosquito."

Spraying set for downtown

Inman is trying to determine if there was an abandoned pool nearby that may have become a breeding ground for the bugs. So far, he hasn't found one.

In response to the death, a plane will spray a four-square-mile section of downtown tonight.

Merced County Health Department program manager Richard Rios said the victim was an adult man who began showing symptoms July 28 and was hospitalized Aug. 3. He died Aug. 17.

Lab tests came back positive for the disease Wednesday, he said, adding the man suffered from underlying medical problems that made him more susceptible to problems from the disease.

People at most risk of getting the disease are those over age 45 and people with weakened immune systems.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicted in 2005 that Merced County would be a hotbed for the West Nile virus, with seven to 14 deaths a year, Inman said. That hasn't happened, in part because of an aggressive campaign to kill mosquitoes, he added.