The state recorded its first death in connection with the West Nile virus. The Illinois Department of Public Health says this week a person in Kankakee died after testing positive for the virus that is typically brought on by a mosquito bite. Public Health Chief Medical Officer Doctor Jennifer Layden says most anyone who winds up bitten and infected with the disease won’t be very ill, but for some it’s a different story.
Overall cases West Nile cases are down in Illinois. The very dry late summer weather is being cited as a possible reason why.