Multiple cases of equine virus in south Georgia

State health officials have confirmed six positive cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis found in five horses in south Georgia. The most recent cases were found in Lowndes County, which had two. One case each was confirmed in Berrien, Brooks, Cook and Lanier counties. For the entire state, nine cases of the mosquito-borne virus have been confirmed for the year—that’s up from six recorded for all of last year. The EEE virus has similarities to that of West Nile. However, a south Georgia health official tells the Valdosta Daily Times that most people bitten by a mosquito carrying EEE will not become sick. The virus cannot be transmitted from horse to person.