Massachusetts reported its second confirmed case of the rare but potentially deadly Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus on Thursday.
The individual was identified as a woman in her thirties, who had been exposed in an area of Plymouth County that was aerially sprayed with insecticide on Tuesday night. She was infected before spraying in the community had been completed.
The department did not say anything about the woman’s current condition, but assured that there have been no changes in the area’s risk level , currently determined to be high.
A horse in the same area was also exposed: the second confirmed case in a Massachusetts horse this year.
“This evidence of the spread of EEE to a person and a horse in Plymouth County before aerial spraying confirms risk in the area,” Public Health Commissioner Dr. Robbie Goldstein said in a release.
“We expect that the aerial spraying will help prevent risk for EEE from continuing to escalate in the area, but it does not eliminate it completely. We are asking people to be consistent about taking steps to prevent mosquito bites.”