County Plans To Hand-Spray For Mosquitoes In Mt. Hope Area

SAN DIEGO, CA — County Vector Control crews plan to hand-spray a neighborhood in the Mt. Hope area this week to keep mosquitoes from potentially spreading the dengue virus, it was announced Wednesday.

The action comes after mosquito activity was found near a person who contracted the fever outside the U.S.

Dengue is a tropical viral disease not commonly found in the contiguous United States. Since the invasive Aedes mosquitoes were first detected in San Diego County in 2014, there have been no locally acquired cases of dengue.

U.S. travelers can get dengue while visiting countries where dengue is common. Dengue infections in travelers are reported each year in San Diego County. From Jan. 1 through June 30 of this year, there have been 15 travel- related cases of dengue in San Diego County residents, officials said.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are no specific medicines to treat dengue. The most common symptoms are fever, chills and any of the following: aches and pains (eye pain, muscle, joint or bone pain), nausea, vomiting and rash.

Symptoms can be moderate and last two to seven days. Most people recover after about a week. However, symptoms can also become severe, even deadly, and include shock and respiratory distress. Some cases can require hospitalization, a county statement read.

County crews went door-to-door through the neighborhood Wednesday to notify residents about the hand-spraying and to teach them how to keep mosquitoes from breeding inside and outside their homes.

Crews plan to hand-spray the area Friday, weather permitting.

According to the county, the treatment area is about 12 acres in size and is bordered by Hilltop Drive to the north, 40th Street to the east, F Street to the south, and Boundary Street to the west within San Diego.

County technicians will knock down adult mosquitoes that can spread disease by applying AquaDuet, a pesticide approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, using ultra-low-volume backpack sprayers, the county statement read. The product "poses low risks to people and pets" and dissipates in roughly 20 to 30 minutes.

Even so, the county is instructing residents in spray areas that they can avoid or minimize their exposure to the pesticide by taking simple steps:

-- stay inside and bring pets indoors if possible;
-- close doors and windows, and turn off fans that bring outdoor air inside the home;
-- wash outside pet food and water bowls;
-- cover fish ponds to avoid direct exposure;
-- rinse fruits and vegetables from your garden with water as you normally would before cooking or eating;
-- wipe down or cover outdoor items such as toys and cover barbecue grills, and
-- beekeepers and those with insects kept outdoors are encouraged to shelter hives and habitats during treatments. Beekeepers registered with the county Department of Agriculture, Weights and

Measures can request to receive advance notice when a pesticide that may affect bees is applied to blossoming plants in their areas.

Residents may resume normal activities 30 minutes after the treatment.

To prevent mosquitoes from breeding, residents are advised to dump out, drain or remove any items inside and outside of homes that can hold water, such as plant saucers, rain gutters, buckets, garbage cans, toys, old tires and wheelbarrows.

Mosquitofish, available for free at locations throughout the county, may be used to control mosquito breeding in backyard standing water sources, such as unmaintained swimming pools, ponds, fountains and horse troughs.

— City News Service