BOSTON — The risk level for West Nile Virus has been raised from moderate to high in 27 Massachusetts communities, the state’s Department of Public Health announced Friday. That announcement comes on the heels of a report from DPH that the first animal case of West Nile in MA for 2021 was confirmed in an alpaca in Middlesex County.
Four human cases of West Nile have been reported in the state this year, DPH said. Last year there were a total of five human cases of West Nile in Massachusetts.
“Based on the occurrence of both animal and human cases, above-average populations of the Culex mosquitoes that carry [West Nile Virus], recent rainfall, and continued weather favorable for mosquito activity, the WNV risk level is being raised in 27 communities from moderate to high,” DPH wrote Friday.
Those communities are as follows:
Essex County
- Lynnfield
- Saugus
Middlesex County
- Arlington
- Bedford
- Belmont
- Burlington
- Cambridge
- Everett
- Lexington
- Lincoln
- Malden
- Medford
- Melrose
- Newton
- Reading
- Somerville
- Stoneham
- Wakefield
- Waltham
- Watertown
- Winchester
- Woburn
Norfolk County
- Brookline
Suffolk County
- Boston
- Chelsea
- Revere
- Winthrop
WNV is usually transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito. While WNV can infect people of all ages, people over the age of 50 are at higher risk for severe disease. Most people infected with WNV will have no symptoms. When present, WNV symptoms may include fever and flu-like illness.
To avoid mosquito bites, residents are advised to use insect repellent when outdoors, be aware of peak mosquito hours, wear appropriate clothing to reduce bites, drain standing water from around their homes, and install or repair screens on all windows and doors.
Mosquitos are most active from dawn to dusk from July through September but can be active as late as November. For more information on how you can protect yourself from mosquitos, you can visit the MA DPH website.
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