West Nile cases now official in Illinois

SPRINGFIELD - State health officials say a Kane County woman in her 20s who fell ill in late July is Illinois' first official human case of West Nile virus this year. The Illinois Department of Health says the woman could have contracted the virus outside the state because she recently traveled. Kane County is one of 12 Illinois counties, including Whiteside, that have reported mosquitoes, birds or horses with the virus this year. While officially the first case in the eyes of the state, the Kane County woman is not the only reported case of the virus. Last month, a Sterling man showed symptoms of West Nile and went to an out-of-town hospital to be tested. Whiteside County Health Department Public Health administrator Beth Fiorini said a pr