The rare and deadly mosquito-borne illness known as Eastern equine encephalitis was identified in New York for the first time in over a decade last week and the person who contracted it has since died from the virus,

New York's first person to contract Eastern equine encephalitis -- or EEE -- in almost a decade has died, the governor's office announced Monday as the state declared the virus an "imminent threat to public health.

The first person in New York state to be diagnosed with eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) in nearly a decade died, Gov. Kathy Hochul's office announced Monday.