Woman Becomes 5th Massachusetts Resident To Contract EEE

BOSTON (CBS) -- A woman in her 60s is the fifth person in Massachusetts to contract Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) this year, the Mass. Dept. of Public Health announced Thursday. She was exposed while in a Plymouth County community that is already at an elevated risk for EEE.

There are four communities at critical risk, 10 at high risk, and 17 at moderate risk in Massachusetts.

The DPH said more than 95% of EEE cases in the state since 2000 were contracted before mid-September. Mosquito populations are on the decline but the risk does not go away until the first hard frost.

Residents are reminded to wear bug spray and avoid being outside between dusk to dawn if you live in a community with an elevated risk.