It's the 23rd human case identified in Brazos County since 2003.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act prevents the health department from releasing any information about the person who contracted the virus or where the mosquito bite occurred. Health department spokeswoman Sara Mendez would say only that the person was a Brazos County resident.
"I don't think people should be scared of [contracting West Nile], but they should definitely be aware of it," Mendez said Thursday. "It is preventable. The only way you're going to get it is from a mosquito bite."
Former Bryan police Officer Donnie Manry, who contracted West Nile virus in July 2006, said Thursday that he "can't stress enough" the importance of using mosquito repellent.
"People still think it happens to someone else," he said. "What if it were your child and you knew that simply taking a few seconds of applying bug spray could make the difference in crippling or paralyzing them for life? Who wouldn't do that? It happens in your backyard."
Four mosquito pools in the region have tested positive for West Nile virus this year. The pools, tested at random by the Texas A&M University entomology department, were at the A&M golf course, on Morningside Drive and Carter Creek Parkway in Bryan and on Summerglen Drive in College Station.
The health department cautions residents during the summer months to drain any standing water, to stay indoors around dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active and to wear long sleeves and long pants when possible.
About 80 percent of the people who are infected with the virus don't show any symptoms, which can include fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting, swollen lymph glands and a skin rash.
The most rare and severe symptoms of West Nile virus include coma, convulsions, vision loss and paralysis. Such a rare, debilitating case of the virus struck Manry two years ago.
He said Thursday that he recently started walking with just one cane, an upgrade from a wheelchair and crutches he'd used previously.
"It's kicking my tail, stamina-wise," he said. "When we go to the mall, by the time we get in there, I'm looking for the first bench I can sit on. I still can't walk without assistance, but hey, it's improvement."
Manry works occasionally with the Texas Engineering Extension Service's urban search-and-rescue team, serving in the command center while crews are responding to disasters. He also has a private investigator's license and works occasionally with local law firms.
Manry wears hearing aids and goes to outpatient therapy twice a week -- but he's beaten the odds, he said.
"There's been a lot of willpower and a lot of prayers and faith," he said. "Next year, I intend to be running a race."
• April Avison's e-mail address is april.avison@theeagle.com.