West Nile virus cases reach 77 in the Netherlands as deaths rise to 12

Eight more people in the Netherlands have been diagnosed with West Nile virus, bringing the confirmed total so far this year to 72, the Dutch public health institute RIVM says.

The latest cases were identified in the past week. No further deaths among people infected with the virus have been reported; ten infected people have died in the Netherlands this year, according to the ANP report carried by Nieuws.nl.

South Holland has recorded the most infections, with 41. Cases have also been identified in Utrecht, North Holland, North Brabant, Gelderland and Overijssel. Most diagnoses were made after patients were admitted to hospital with symptoms.

The new figures follow an earlier RIVM tally of 59 cases and ten deaths. That report said the deaths were among infected people; it did not establish that West Nile virus caused each death.

The virus circulates among birds and can be transmitted to people by mosquitoes. Most people have few or no noticeable symptoms, though some develop flu-like or more serious illness.

Update

The Netherlands has recorded 12 deaths among people infected with West Nile virus in 2026, after two more deaths were reported in the week to 5 November. The total number of reported human cases has reached 77, according to the public health institute RIVM.

The latest RIVM update says one new patient was reported since 29 October, taking the case total from 76 to 77. The institute expects the outbreak to have passed its peak because the mosquito season is over.

The new case was in Zuid-Holland, which has recorded 45 infections. Utrecht has reported 14; Noord-Holland and Noord-Brabant seven each; and Gelderland and Overijssel two each. RIVM says the infections were acquired through bites from infected mosquitoes.

The reported deaths are among patients with West Nile virus infection; the figures do not establish that the virus caused each death. RIVM’s next scheduled update is 19 November.

The latest Dutch count follows a rise reported in October, when the total reached 59 cases and ten deaths. An earlier account of that increase reported that the deaths were among infected people and did not necessarily mean West Nile virus was the cause.