Two Bolingbrook Mosquito Samples Found to Have West Nile Virus

The Will County Health Department is urging residents to protect themselves against West Nile Virus after two Bolingbrook mosquitoes were found to have had the virus Thursday, officials said.

A pair of mosquito samples harvested from a Will County Health Department monitoring site in Bolingbrook tested positive virus, a release said.

It is the third confirmed report of West Nile Virus-carrying mosquitoes in Bolingbrook this month—a Bolingbrook site operated by the Illinois Department of Public Health reported a positive sample on Aug. 11.

West Nile Virus is a mosquito-borne disease first introduced in the U.S. in 1999. More than 60 Illinois residents have died from the virus since 2002.

The county is encouraging resident to avoid mosquitoes, which can transmit the disease to humans during a blood meal.

Wear long sleeves and long pants when spending extended periods of time outdoors, and using insect repellent containing DEET will also help avoid mosquito bites, the release said. DEET is a chemical compound found to be an effective mosquito deterrent.

For more information about West Nile Virus, visit www.idph.state.il.us, or www.cdc.gov.