ROSEVILLE, Calif — A record amount of mosquitoes and birds with West Nile virus have been found in Placer County, according to the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District.
As of Wednesday, the control district has found 66 mosquito samples and 10 dead birds have tested positive for West Nile virus. The cases have been found in rural, west Placer County, West Roseville, Lincoln and Newcastle.
"The major concern is West Nile virus has no cure and does affect people sometimes very serious, either making them very sick or even being fatal in some cases," said Joel Buettner, the General Manager of the Placer Mosquito & Vector Control District.
The control district said in a news release that record rainfall in the spring has left standing water throughout the county. High temperatures also contribute to the risk of transmitting the virus.
"Under these conditions, West Nile virus transmission risk from a mosquito bite is very high. The District is conducting wide-area adult mosquito treatments to reduce the number of infected mosquitoes in the environment," the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District said.
Their job is to monitor the environmental conditions, including mosquito abundance and the rate of infection in mosquitos and dead birds.
They then take the measures needed to reduce the risk of disease transmission.
"This week, since we've had so many occurrences of positive mosquitos throughout the county, we're doing quite a bit of aerial and ground-based adult mosquito control. And that's really just to focus on those areas where there's the highest risk to human health," said Buettner.
Officials said they'll monitor and make follow-up treatments, but there are ways you can protect yourself.
The number one way is to avoid mosquito bites altogether.
"You can do that by wearing repellent that has an EPA-registered ingredient like Deet or Permethrin. Wear long sleeves and long pants, which I know is difficult when we have weather like this. Just be aware, helping us with clearing standing water around your house; doing things like that is very helpful," said Buettner.
Symptoms of West Nile Virus can include headache, body aches and vomiting. If you feel any of these, you should visit your doctor immediately.
There have been no human cases of West Nile virus in Placer County as of July 19.
The district says there are about 15 employees who are dedicated to monitoring and treating. The county is usually done with West Nile Mosquitos towards the end of October.
If anyone thinks they have a mosquito problem, they can submit a problem report to the district HERE.
A map of the area the control district will be treating can be found HERE.
What repellent should you use?
There are five active, EPA-approved ingredients known to be effective mosquito repellents, according to the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District.
- DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide)
- Picaridin (KBR 3023)
- Oil of lemon eucalyptus [p-menthane 3,8-diol (PMD)]
- IR 3535
- Permethrin
Find more information HERE.
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