News Tip
Media Contacts: Dr. Charles Apperson, 919/515-4326 or [email protected]Dr. Wes Watson, 919/513-2028 or [email protected]Kevin Potter, NC State News Services, 919/515-3470 or [email protected]
Oct. 20, 2000
NC State Experts Can Discuss North Carolina West Nile Virus Case
North Carolina public health officials on Friday, Oct. 20, announced that the first case of an animal infected with the West Nile virus has been documented in the state. NC State University experts are available to the media to answer questions about the mosquito-spread virus and its transmission.
Dr. Dennis McBride, North Carolina's state health director, confirmed that in late September, a sick crow found at Jordan Lake west of Raleigh was infected with West Nile virus. The bird, found by a U.S. Corps of Engineers employee, later died.
Dr. Charles Apperson and Dr. Wes Watson -- NC State professors of entomology -- are available to comment on the situation. Apperson can be reached at 919/515-4326 or [email protected]. Watson can be reached at 919/513-2028 or [email protected].
The virus, which originated in Africa, was found for the first time in 1999 in New York. It has since also appeared in Virginia. Apperson and Watson traveled to New York twice this summer at request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to collect mosquitoes to learn which species were most likely to spread the West Nile Virus to humans and animals.
"People will, of course, be concerned, but there is minimal risk to human health this year, because mosquito season is ending" because of the arrival of cold weather and recent drier-than-normal conditions, Apperson says. "This year, the risk is minimal. Next year, the risk may be greater. Next spring, we will have to conduct field tests across the region. We don't know if the infection is widespread or was just an isolated incident until we do those tests."
Until then, Apperson says, "people should take reasonable precautions." That means they should be alert for mosquitoes, wear protective clothing if they will be in an area where there are likely to be mosquitoes, and generally use common sense. Apperson is somewhat surprised the West Nile Virus has been found this far south from New York in just the second season since its discovery there. North Carolina and Virginia, however, are part of the crow's migratory range.
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