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9.16.2000 00:15
West Nile found in 2 more towns
 URI tests confirm that dead crows found in North Kingstown and North Smithfield had the virus which is now believed to have spread throughout New England.
By MATT McKINNEY
Journal Staff Writer
A pair of dead crows found in North Smithfield and North Kingstown were infected with the West Nile virus, a biologist determined yesterday.
The discoveries add yet more evidence to the theory that the virus, first discovered in New York City last summer, has probably spread to all of New England.
The North Kingstown bird was found on Earle Drive in the Hamilton neighborhood; the other bird was found on Reservoir Road near the North Smithfield-Lincoln border. Tests on both birds at the University of Rhode Island confirmed the presence of the virus, which can be fatal but so far this year has not killed anyone in the country.
North Smithfield Town Administrator Daniel J. Andrews said spraying of an insecticide to kill mosquitoes that carry the West Nile virus may begin as soon as tomorrow evening in a two-mile radius around the spot where the bird was found.
People are advised to stay indoors during the spraying, close windows and shut off air conditioners, and wait at least 10 minutes after the spraying to go outside.
Areas to be sprayed include the villages of Albion and Manville in Lincoln, the Cumberland Hills area in Cumberland, the northeast corner of Smithfield and, in North Smithfield, Reservoir Road; the portion of Rocky Hill Road from Cranberry Lane to the Smithfield town line; Iron Mine Hill Road from Ironwood Golf Practice Center to Route 146; Old Sayles Hill Road; Roger Court; Chamberlain Court; Woodland Road; Sayles Hill Road to the Lincoln town line; Old Smithfield Road; St. Jude Street; and Eddie Dowling Highway from Route 146 to the Lincoln town line.
Areas to be sprayed in North Kingstown include Wickford Village, and the Belleville, Allentown and Hamilton neighborhoods.
The virus first appeared in America last year when it sickened 62 people in New York City and killed 7. This year just 9 people have been infected, all but one in New York.
The virus is carried by mosquitoes and so far in Rhode Island and Massachusetts has killed crows and, in Wakefield, a horse. The virus is fatal in humans 3 to 15 percent of the time. Most people fight off the virus. The elderly and those with weakened immune systems are most at risk.
Find out more about the West Nile virus
, from recent local news to information about the disease to preventive measures, at:
http://projo.com/specials/westnile/
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