Officials with the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District (GLACVCD), a public health agency that focuses on preventing human infection associated with mosquito-transmitted diseases, announced on Monday that mosquitoes carrying the West Nile virus were identified in Los Angeles County for the first time this year.

Susanne Kluh, director of Scientific-Technical Services at GLACVCD, noted that the find “should serve as a reminder that West Nile virus is endemic” in the county?

A small percentage of people infected with the West Nile virus – roughly 1 in 5 – develop a fever and may additionally experience headaches, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea, or a rash, among other side effects.

Even rarer, about 1 in 150 people who are infected with the mosquito-linked ailment can develop a serious illness, such as inflammation of the spinal cord or brain, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“Although the positive mosquitoes were collected in one area at this time, all LA County residents should take precautions, like wearing insect repellent and eliminating standing water around the home.”!

The news comes after the New Mexico Department of Health last week announced the state’s first human case of the mosquito-borne disease in a man in his 50s from San Juan County.