BOSTON (AP) - The state health department says a Boston-area man in his 60s has died of West Nile virus.

It is the first death from the mosquito-borne virus in Massachusetts this year and also the first in the state in three years.

The health department said Tuesday the man likely contracted West Nile in Suffolk County and was hospitalized before his death. A second Boston-area man in his 60s also was hospitalized for West Nile.

The two newly confirmed cases are the fourth and fifth this year. Six were reported last year.

The health department is raising the West Nile risk level to high for Boston, Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop in Suffolk County.

People are urged to protect themselves against mosquitoes and limit outdoor activities in the evening, when mosquitoes are most active.

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