The Southern Nevada Health District has reported the first positive test for West Nile virus this year.
Positive tests came from the southeast and northwest parts of the Las Vegas Valley.
Dr. Joseph Iser, chief health officer for the Southern Nevada Health District, says very few cases of West Nile turn up each year. But the virus, spread by infected mosquitoes, can be dangerous for older and younger people, and those with weakened immune systems.
Despite extreme summer temperatures in the desert, Iser said mosquitoes will breed in standing pools of water, or in swimming pools that aren’t maintained.
Joseph Iser, Southern Nevada Health District