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A Wood County resident has died of what
health officials suspect was the West Nile
virus.
The 78-year-old died September 22 at
St. Joseph's Hospital, Parkersburg.
If the diagnosis is confirmed by the
Center for Disease Control, it will be
West Virginia's first human fatality
from the disease.
State and county health officials have
declined to release the victim's name at this time.
The man was reportedly
hospitalized for a week with what doctors
at first thought was a mild stroke. He is the second West Virginian
believed to have contracted the West Nile Virus..
Fifty-five-year-old Howard Clemens of
Poca, WV became sick in August and has
recovered. Samples of his blood
have also been sent to the Center for Disease Control. .
Mosquitoes spread West Nile from
infected birds to horses and humans. The
symptoms are similar to the flu.
West Nile has been detected in birds and
horses in at least 41 of West Virginia's 55
counties.
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