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Tarrant Reports First West Nile Case Of Season

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A Fort Worth woman in her 40’s has developed Tarrant County’s first case of West Nile virus this season.   It’s also the first case reported in North Texas.

Tarrant County Public Health says she has the milder form, not the neuroinvasive form that more often leads to long-term illness, paralysis or death.

Last year at least 89 Texans died from West Nile.  More than 1,800 became ill.

In Dallas County ground spraying for mosquitoes that may carry West Nile has already begun in DeSoto, Richardson and Highland Park.

Health officials want to remind North Texans to protect against mosquitoes which may carry the West Nile virus by wearing long-sleeve shirts and long pants outdoors at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active, and by using insect repellent.  

They also urge residents to drain standing water where mosquitoes might breed.

Symptoms of West Nile include headache, fever, muscle and joint aches, nausea and fatigue.

Former KERA staffer Shelley Kofler was news director, managing editor and senior reporter. She is an award-winning reporter and television producer who previously served as the Austin bureau chief and legislative reporter for North Texas ABC affiliate WFAA-TV.