Los Angeles County health officials reported Monday that 100 cases of West Nile virus have been recorded so far this year, the highest number this early in the mosquito season in nearly a decade.
Five deaths have been reported, and almost all of the people diagnosed with the virus have suffered severe illness affecting the brain or spinal cord and required hospital care, according to the county Department of Public Health. Cases have been reported throughout the county.
The last time the county recorded at least 100 cases was in 2017, when 268 cases were reported over the entire mosquito season, health officials said…