First Illinois West Nile virus death of 2025 reported in suburban Cook County
Officials on Wednesday announced the first death related to the West Nile virus in Illinois this year.
The person who died was a suburban Cook County resident in their 60s. The gender of the person and specifically where they lived were not specified.
Humans contract the West Nile virus upon being bitten by mosquitoes that have contracted the virus by feeding on infected birds, the Cook County Department of Public Health explained.
Eight out of 10 people infected do not develop symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The risk of West Nile virus remains high, the department said. Since May 11 and through Sept. 6, suburban Cook County has recorded 33 West Nile cases — almost twice as many as last year — and 22 of the cases have been neuroinvasive, meaning that the patients' central nervous systems were involved.
The public is advised to do their best to protect themselves from mosquito bites, including using an Environmental Protection Agency-registered insect repellent, wearing loose-fitting clothing, and, if possible, avoiding peak mosquito feeding times, typically around dusk and dawn.