2 Deaths Bring West Nile Total to 13
Two retirees from Riverside County have died of complications from West Nile virus, raising the total number of deaths to 13 statewide, health officials said.
The state Department of Health Services said it was informed Thursday of the two new cases.
Officials said the peak season for West Nile virus has passed for the year. The agency said that while new cases of the mosquito-borne virus continue to crop up, the number of cases logged each week has dropped.
One of the victims, an 80-year-old woman from Hemet, had been sick since June. Doctors diagnosed her with pneumonia after she complained of headaches, a stiff neck and weakness. The woman was hospitalized Aug. 21 and died 10 days later after a test revealed she had contracted the virus.
In the other case, relatives said 73-year-old Ernesto Casarez, who was retired from construction, died Sept. 7 after being hospitalized for a month.
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