Fears are growing over the spread of the deadly West Nile virus as two more people have died from mosquito bites in Spain, bringing the death toll in one region this year to five
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Fears are growing over the spread of the deadly West Nile virus after two more people died in Spain from mosquito bites.
Since the beginning of this year, five people have died from West Nile virus in the Seville region.
The last two to die both lived in Coria del Rio on the banks of the Guadalquivir River, where another died earlier this year. One of them is believed to have been a 71-year-old man who was admitted to intensive care in a Seville hospital.
The regional government of Junta de Andalucia reported last night that ten new cases of the disease have been identified, as concerns grow in the area.
On July 19, the family of Granada Romero Ruiz confirmed that the 86-year-old woman had lost her fight for her life at the Virgen del Rio Hospital in Seville. On July 11, she was admitted and found to have West Nile virus.
Fears of the spread of the deadly West Nile virus are growing after two more people died in Spain after being bitten by mosquitoes (file)
On July 19, the family of Granada’s Romero Ruiz (pictured) confirmed that the 86-year-old had lost her fight for her life at the Virgen del Rio Hospital in Seville after her admission on July 11 and confirmation that she had West Nile virus.
Her son Antonio Pineda said she was in perfect health before being bitten by a mosquito, and said her death could have been prevented if areas near her home in La Puebla del Rio, a half-hour drive south of Seville, had been properly sanitized.
The other two victims were from the towns of Dos Hermanos and Coria del Rio.
British holidaymakers travelling to Spain have been warned about the deadly West Nile virus for several years.
Infectious disease expert Pablo Barreiro warned that the disease could spread across Spain after a deadly outbreak in 2020 that left two people dead in Seville and eight in hospital intensive care.
He said at the time: ‘Only two to five percent of cases show symptoms.
βIt is a disease that can very easily go unnoticed.β
Last month, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) sounded the alarm. Director Andrea Ammon said: ‘Europe is already seeing how climate change is creating more favourable conditions for invasive mosquitoes to spread into previously untouched areas and infect more people with diseases such as dengue.
‘The increase in international traffic from countries where dengue is endemic also increases the risk of imported cases and inevitably the risk of local outbreaks.’
West Nile virus, spread by the Culex mosquito, first reached Spain in 2004. Horses were the worst affected.
Older people and people with underlying health conditions such as diabetes and cancer are most at risk, but in children it can cause meningitis.
Mosquitoes that transmit the virus have been found to be most common in swamps and swimming pools in rural areas.
Puebla del Rio City Hall said in a statement posted on X last month after Granada’s death: “We deeply regret the death of Granada, who was affected by the West Nile virus.”
‘We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that all public service providers do their utmost to combat this virus and that there is a permanent strategy to combat mosquitoes.’
The ECDC recently reported 713 locally acquired cases of West Nile virus across nine European countries. This shocking number has resulted in the tragic loss of 67 lives and the virus has spread to 22 new regions that were previously unaffected.
Last year, Italy, Greece, Romania, Hungary and Spain were the biggest hotspots of the deadly virus.