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Last updated on Thursday, August 16, 2012
(INDIANAPOLIS) - Indiana health officials have confirmed the state’s first death from the West Nile virus this year.
The Indiana Department of Health said the infected person lived in the Evansville area, but no further information was released.
Seven human cases of West Nile virus have been reported in Fulton, Hamilton, Jackson, Monroe, Marion and Vanderburgh counties so far this year, health officials said.
Mosquitoes carrying the virus have been found in 62 Indiana counties.
"Because this virus is carried and transmitted by mosquitoes, we are all susceptible to it," State Health Commissioner Dr. Gregory Larkin said in a statement. "The tragic death we've recently experienced serves as a reminder of just how important it is to take steps to protect ourselves from mosquitoes."
West Nile virus can cause an illness with symptoms including fever, headache, body aches, swollen lymph glands or a rash.
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