A health alert has been issued by authorities in Spain after a potentially deadly virus was detected in the country’s southernmost region. A case of West Nile Virus (WNV) was detected in a dead wild bird in the Campo de Gibraltar, Andalusia, and has prompted enhanced measures in the surrounding area to stem any potential spread.
The case has been traced to a rural finca in the El Zabal area in La Linea, a zone that sits between Sotogrande, San Roque and the Gibraltar border. Officials have now activated enhanced mosquito-control measures across the surrounding municipalities, and means that the entire area has been placed in an official “alert zone” – a classification that has been used during outbreaks elsewhere in Spain. Officials have also warned that conditions this autumn – characterised by heavy rain, warm temperatures and persistent standing water – are ideal for mosquito activity.
Following the alert, local authorities are urging residents in both inland and coastal areas to take immediate precautions, warning that public cooperation is essential to prevent the virus from spreading. The advice includes using mosquito repellent at dawn and dusk, installing screens and removing stagnant water, a common mosquito breeding site.
Meanwhile, extra treatments are being carried out in risk areas, including larval-control teams targeting wetlands, drainage channels, scrublands and agricultural zones. Increased surveillance is also being implemented across the Cadiz and Malaga provinces, two of the most vulnerable areas for mosquito-borne diseases, thanks to their combination of wetland habitats and dense population centres.
This classification was previously applied during outbreaks in the province of Seville, where human cases have been reported in recent years. In the summer of 2024, the virus led to the deaths of five people and sparked protests calling for stronger action to address the threat.
While experts have stated that the discovery does not pose an immediate danger to humans, they have noted that the virus is present in wildlife and is circulating closer to the Costa del Sol than in previous seasons.
The latest detection of WNV comes only a month after the virus was discovered just metres from people’s homes in a Malaga neighbourhood. This detection, made in the neighbourhood of Tarajal – just six miles from Malaga’s city centre – also prompted authorities to declare the area “on alert”, until at least November 5.
The virus spreads to humans when mosquitoes bite infected birds and then subsequently bite humans. WNV will not cause any symptoms for the majority of people. However, about one in five will experience a fever, headache, body aches and other flu-like symptoms. According to the UK Health Security Agency, symptoms typically appear two to 14 days after infection and should resolve within three to six days.
In rare cases, WNV infects the nervous system and causes serious brain or spinal cord inflammation and even death.
A British man from Hampshire – who caught WNV and became seriously ill in Goa, India – said he went from being “a fit and able person” to someone who was “disabled and has to think about what they can and can’t do on a day-to-day basis”.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
