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DeKalb Health Officials Report First Human West Nile Virus Case in 2020

DECATUR, Ga. – The DeKalb County Board of Health has confirmed its first human case of West Nile virus infection in the county for the year.

The patient, a female in her sixties, resides in the East Lake Terrace area of unincorporated Decatur. Currently, no additional information is available, as the investigation is still ongoing.

Last year, one human case of West Nile virus in DeKalb County was confirmed on September 13.

Due to COVID-19, the Board of Health will not perform its usual door-to-door canvas of the affected area. Larvicide application in low-lying areas and storm drains have already taken place in several areas throughout the county, including the area where the case resides. Larvicide keeps young mosquitoes from becoming flying, biting adults.

According to the CDC, no data or scientific evidence suggests that COVID-19 or other similar coronaviruses are spread by mosquitoes, although West Nile and COVID-19 share similar symptoms. Those similarities underscore the importance of having symptoms evaluated by a medical professional, particularly if you’ve recently spent an extended amount of time outdoors without wearing insect repellent.

To reduce mosquitoes in and around your home:

  • Reduce mosquito breeding in your yard by eliminating standing water in gutters and items such as planters, toys, wheelbarrows and old tires.
  • Discourage mosquitoes from resting in your yard by trimming tall grass, weeds and vines.
  • Make sure window and door screens fit tightly to keep mosquitoes out of your home.

To prevent being bitten by mosquitoes:

  • Reduce outdoor exposure at dawn and dusk, when the mosquitoes that transmit West Nile virus are most active.
  • Use an insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535.  Apply according to label instructions.
  • Spray clothing with products containing permethrin. Also apply according to label instructions.
  • Wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants and socks when outdoors, particularly at dawn and dusk and in areas with large numbers of mosquitoes.

For more information about the West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne illnesses, contact the DeKalb County Board of Health’s Environmental Health division at
(404) 508-7900 or visit dekalbpublichealth.com/envhealth.

For more information about the West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne illnesses, contact the DeKalb County Board of Health’s Environmental Health division at
(404) 508-7900 or visit dekalbpublichealth.com/envhealth.

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SERVICE ALERT:

Due to unplanned maintenance,
our Clifton Springs Health Center will be on CLOSED on Monday, November 4, 2024.

Our East DeKalb, T. O. Vinson and North DeKalb
Health Centers remain open to serve you.

We apologize for any inconvenience and
appreciate your understanding. 

SERVICE ALERT:

Due to unexpected maintenance, our Clifton Springs Health Center will be closing early today at 2:30 p.m.
We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding. Thank you!

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed, on October 13, 2025, in observance of the state holiday.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed, on September 1, 2025, in observance of Labor Day.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed, July 4, 2025, in observance of Independence Day.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed, June 19, 2025, in observance of Juneteenth.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed, May 26, 2025, in observance of Memorial Day.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed April 18, 2025, in observance of the State holiday.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed January 20, 2025, in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr’s Birthday.

SERVICE ALERT:

Our health centers will be closed on January 1, 2025, in observance of the State holiday.

AIR QUALITY UPDATE 

Current weather models show that winds will begin to shift
from the east to the west after sunset on Wednesday.

Smoke from the BioLab facility fire in Rockdale County is predicted to settle towards the ground as it moves toward Atlanta. There is a high likelihood that people across Metro Atlanta will wake up on Thursday morning seeing haze and smelling chlorine.

For more information about health precautions, click here.

last updated 10/2/2024 at 5:45 p.m.

Warning SERVICE ALERT UPDATE Warning

DeKalb Public Health will resume normal operations
for all health centers and services at 8:15 a.m.,
on Monday, September 30.

SERVICE ALERT 

Due to today’s worldwide cybersecurity outage, some services have been impacted.

  • You may experience delays reaching our Call Center, which handles health center appointments.
  • WIC benefit issuance is unavailable at this time. However, eWIC cards can still be used at authorized WIC vendors.


This outage has not only affected DeKalb Public Health, but other government and business services, in Georgia, throughout the nation and internationally.

We apologize for the inconvenience and greatly appreciate your patience, as we work with our partners to fully restore systems.

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on Tuesday December 24 and Wednesday, December 25th, in observance of the holiday. Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on November 28-29th, in observance of the State holiday.

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on Monday, November 11th, in observance of the Veterans Day holiday.

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on Monday, October 14th, in observance of the State holiday.

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on Monday, September 2, in observance of the holiday. Have a safe and healthy Labor Day! 

SERVICE ALERT

In observance of Juneteenth, all DeKalb Public Health centers will be closed on Wednesday, June 19th. #happyjuneteenth

SERVICE ALERT: Our health centers will be closed on Thursday, July 4th, in observance of the Federal Holiday. Have a safe and healthy Fourth of July!