A 44 year old Rhode Island native succumbed to EEE on June 21, 1998. He was a resident of West Warwick who apparently had not traveled outside the state in early June. Mosquitoes trapped near his home and near a golf course in Richmond yielded no virus isolations. This case is considered highly unusual because it occurred much earlier than the typical EEE season. No other human or animal cases were reported in Rhode Island in 1998.

The Massachusetts Health Dept. graciously tested 18,539 Rhode Island mosquitoes (701 pools) in 1998, since the Yale Arbovirus Research Lab no longer offers that service. Mosquitoes were trapped between June 17 and October 26. All pools were tested for EEE and HJ viruses. EEE was isolated from 14 pools from four towns (Westerly, South Kingstown, Charlestown, and Richmond) during the September 7 to October 13 period. All EEE isolations were from Culiseta species. The HJ virus was isolated from 40 pools from six towns (those above plus Tiverton and Little Compton) during the July 20 to October 8 period. HJ isolations were from Culiseta species (33), Culex species (3), Coquillettidia perturbans (2), and Aedes canadensis (2). In 1999, and in subsequent years, Rhode Island mosquitoes will be tested at a laboratory constructed at the University of Rhode Island in the summer of 1998.

Two saltmarsh water management projects were conducted in the spring of 1998. At Mosquito Beach, on Block Island, a breach in the barrier dune was reopened to enhance tidal exchange in a two acre marsh that had been producing excessive mosquito populations. The project also involved limited ditch maintenance and constructing a rock dam to maintain a high water level in an existing fish reservoir. Several federal, state, and local agencies partnered to conduct the OMWM/restoration project at the Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge in Middletown. The project involved reducing excessive mosquito production via employing OMWM techniques, and replacing an undersized culvert and selective construction as a restoration effort on the tidally restricted side of the saltmarsh. The Connecticut DEP Wetlands Restoration Unit was contracted to construct fish reservoirs, clear clogged tidal channels, and create a channel system to service the tidally restricted acreage.

Finally, the Department of Environmental Management purchased a low ground pressure tracked excavator in February, 1999. The ASV Positrack, equipped with a backhoe, bucket, and mower, will be used for saltmarsh water management projects aimed at reducing mosquitoes and for saltmarsh restoration projects.