Colorado has its first human case of West Nile virus this year.
Health officials say a Mesa County man hospitalized after contracting the virus is now recovering at home. He’s the first person to be diagnosed with it in Colorado so far this year, according to the state.
Thomas Orr is a regional epidemiologist at the Mesa County Health Department.
"Delta and Mesa County over on the Western Slope have seen cases sporadically over the years," Orr says. "Some summers we have no cases reported and other times we have a handful and sometimes we get quite a few. So I hope that is not a harbinger of a hard year."
He says Mesa County tests mosquitoes for the virus, but they haven’t seen a positive test yet in 2015.
Last year, there were 118 cases of the West Nile reported across the state and four people died.
Health officials say the best way to avoid the getting the virus is by draining standing pools of water, wearing bug repellent and staying away from active mosquito areas.
