A second person in Connecticut has died from Eastern Equine Encephalitis. An Old Lyme resident was diagnosed with EEE and hospitalized last Friday.
State health officials announced the death Wednesday. That follows the death last week of an East Lyme resident who was diagnosed in August.
That death was the first fatal case in the state since 2013.
“We have known about EEE virus since 1938, and there no human cases between that time and 2013. So this is something different,” said state epidemiologist Matthew Carter.
Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz blamed the spread of the virus this year on the warmer-than-usual fall temperatures.
“This is an effect of climate change.”
Officials with the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, which monitors mosquitos in the state, say once the first frost arrives, mosquito-borne diseases will no longer be a problem.
“Mosquito numbers are clearly declining. The other good news is that the number of positive mosquitoes that we are finding with Eastern Equine Encephalitis are also declining dramatically,” said state epidemiologist Theodore Andreadis.
State health officials encourage residents to avoid outdoor activities in the evening, and to wear bug spray to prevent mosquito bites.
Officials say there aren’t any plans for aerial spraying to limit the mosquito population.
