(QMI Agency File Photo)

WINDSOR, Ont. -- Health officials suspect West Nile virus caused the deaths of two elderly men in Ontario.

A 71-year-old Windsor man died recently, the regional health unit confirmed Thursday morning.

The other, a 74-year-old man from Toronto, died two weeks ago, according to a Toronto Public Health bulletin. The latest figures report 84 confirmed and probable cases in Toronto.

Ontario has been a hot spot for the mosquito-borne virus.

Public Health Ontario said 220 confirmed and probable cases of the virus have been reported in Ontario this year -- the worst year on record since the province first began tracking the virus in 2002.

Quebec has reported 64 cases, Manitoba has recorded 35, Alberta has had seven and Saskatchewan has had six, the Public Health Agency of Canada reports.

Dr. G. Allen Heimann, the medical officer of health for the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, said the deaths emphasize the need to take precautions against mosquitoes, even as the season comes to an end.

The deaths are the first linked to West Nile virus this year.