MELBA, Idaho (AP) - A 16-year-old Melba High School student has been diagnosed with a rare and severe form of West Nile virus called West Nile meningitis, according to Laurie Boston with the Southwest District Health Department, which covers six Idaho counties.

David Cole was hospitalized at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, according to a report Friday on KBCI-TV.

Associated Press efforts to reach Boston by phone late Friday were unsuccessful.

West Nile virus has likely contributed to the deaths of at least three people in Idaho this summer, state Department of Health and Welfare spokesman Tom Shanahan said earlier Friday, and at least 54 people have been sickened by the disease.

"I would just hope that people would be aware that one week ago, he was totally fine," the boy's mother, Beth Cole, told KBCI. "His life was right on track and a few days later he was in the hospital with pneumonia and meningitis and encephalitis, fighting for his life. And it can happen to anyone, and I would just hope people take the proper precautions and be smart."

On Friday, Beth Cole told the station, David opened his eyes and squeezed a nurse's hand.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site, West Nile meningitis is one of four rare and severe forms of West Nile virus that aggressively attacks the central nervous system.