A dead bird infected with the West Nile virus was found in Plainview late last week. According to County Executive Thomas Gulotta's office, the bird was found in an area north of Bethpage State Park and south of Old Country Road.

At the time, it was the third bird infected with the virus to be found in Nassau County. Other infected birds were previously found in Bethpage and Wantagh. Infected birds have also been found in Suffolk County, Westchester County, New York City, and several New Jersey counties. Suffolk and New York City have already commenced with limited spraying of insecticides.

In addition to testing dead birds, the county has been testing the mosquito population, the carrier of the disease. All mosquito tests have yielded negative results. The county has sent more than 25,000 mosquito specimens to the state for testing.

"I want to advise residents that there have been no human cases of West Nile discovered in the county to date and no mosquitoes have turned up positive after 18 weeks of extensive monitoring and the delivery of 200 birds to the New York State Departments of Health and Environmental Conservation for testing," said Gulotta in a press release.

The release further stated that if infected mosquitoes are found in the area of the infected bird, a "value judgement" will be made to determine if limited spraying is required.

The county wants residents to continue to take preventive measures around the home, such as wearing long sleeves and long pants when going outdoors, using a mosquito repellant, and eliminating stagnant water around the house.

A 24-hour West Nile Information Hotline has been created to give county residents up-to-date information on the situation. The hotline number is 516-571-2500.