One Illinois county is sounding the alarm after reporting the discovery of the season’s first West Nile-positive mosquitoes.
What’s happening?
In late June, the Will County Health Department announced that a batch of mosquitoes in the city of Joliet, which is around 40 miles southwest of Chicago, tested positive for West Nile virus.
Patch reported on the announcement, adding that the mosquito-borne illness had already been found in 22 of the state’s counties so far in 2025, per Illinois Department of Public Health data. Health officials in Chicago issued a similar warning a few weeks earlier, as a batch of mosquitoes there had tested positive for the virus.
“With mosquito season underway in Illinois, it is now time for Illinoisans, especially seniors and those with weakened immune systems, to start taking precautions to prevent mosquito bites,” said IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra, according to Patch.
Why is this announcement important?
West Nile can cause symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea, and rash, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, the virus can also be deadly. Illinois saw 69 human cases in 2024, including 13 deaths, according to the IDPH…