OREM — Pete Rainaldi was working in the back yard of his Magna home last summer when he stumbled upon a swarm of mosquitoes.

He felt a bite, he said, but didn't think much of it.

In the 10 months since, Rainaldi, 62, has had plenty of time to think about the mosquito bite that gave him West Nile virus and nearly killed him.

And all of that hospital-room reflection has led to this: Rainaldi wants others to take West Nile virus seriously and follow the advice of health officials by covering up with long-sleeved shirts and pants and wearing mosquito repellent.

"People need to be aware of what can happen," he said.

West Nile is a mosquito-born virus that affects the central nervous system in humans. In 2005, there were 52 identified cases in Utah, including the death of a 72-year-old woman.

Symptoms vary from case to case, and 80 percent of people who are infected with West Nile show no symptoms at all, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Rainaldi said he started feeling flu-like symptoms less than 24 hours after he had been bitten.

He was taking one of his usual long walks through Magna, looking for aluminum cans and cardboard to recycle, when he started feeling weak and had to return home.

"I felt real tired, real crummy," he said. "I didn't even want to eat I was so tired."

A few days later, Rainaldi passed out at his home, he said. A neighbor who stopped by to check on Rainaldi found him and took him to Pioneer Valley Hospital in West Valley City.

Rainaldi said he doesn't remember the first three or four weeks he was in the hospital, but his brother does.

"He was in pretty sad shape," Joe Rainaldi said.

For a time, it didn't look like the man would survive, he said.

Pete Rainaldi spent four months in Pioneer Valley Hospital before being transferred to the Orem Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where he continues to recover.

Today he suffers from numbness and paralysis in his legs, and his short-term memory isn't what it used to be, he said.

"I'm walking a little bit," Pete Rainaldi said. "It's slow, but it's coming."

His attitude, however, has made steady improvement, Joe Rainaldi said.

"(Pete) has been able to work very diligently and hard at trying to get back as much as he can of his feeling and use of his legs," he said.

Pete Rainaldi says he expects to be walking without any assistance in three years.

In a few weeks, Joe Rainaldi plans to relocate his brother to an assisted-living center closer to Pete's neighbors and friends in Magna.

Only about one in 150 people who are infected with West Nile virus develops severe illness, according CDC.

Last week, a sick magpie found in Salt Lake County tested positive for the virus. It was the first detection of West Nile virus in Utah this year.

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E-mail: jpage@desnews.com