West Nile found in Kane County for first time this year

In a down year for the West Nile virus, Kane County announced the discovery of its first mosquito pool to test positive for potentially deadly disease.

A pool of mosquitoes found in the Montgomery area tested positive, Kane County Health Department officials said Tuesday.

Despite the finding, no human cases of the virus have been reported in Kane County or Illinois so far this season. There have been only eight reported human cases in the entire country this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control, none of them fatal.

Last year Kane County had three confirmed human cases of West Nile virus. The county's all-time high occurred in 2005, with 17 human West Nile Cases.

The reason West Nile is popping up less often so far this year is mostly attributable to the weather, said Kane County Health Department Executive Director Paul Kuehnert.

"Although we haven't had the hot, dry weather this year that boosts the Culex mosquito activity, residents still need to take precautions against West Nile virus at least until the first hard frost," Kuehnert said. "Until then, we can expect to continue to identify positive mosquito pools and human cases in Kane County."