RIVERSIDE –
Health officials have announced the first Riverside County death in 7-years attributed to West Nile virus. The 77-year-old man lived in the western part of the county, but his identity and where he contracted the disease were not disclosed. He’d been briefly hospitalized. There have been 16 human cases of West Nile virus so far this year in Riverside County. That compares to 15 last year and 35 in 2013. Neighboring San Bernardino County reported one fatality earlier this summer. The virus is transmitted to humans and animals through a mosquito bite. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds. Health officials emphasized that the risk of serious illness to humans is low.