Health Officials: More Mosquito Spraying Unlikely for Lindenhurst

Though Suffolk health officials announced that more mosquitoes have tested positive for West Nile Virus, it’s not likely that another for the disease will take place.

The SCDHS sprayed the area in , but two other sprayings were scheduled and in due to weather.

“Many factors go into the decision to spray for mosquitoes, and we don’t want to say no, but we generally spray in the summer months,” Suffolk County Department of Health Services’ spokesperson Grace Kelly-McGovern told Lindenhurst Patch late Wednesday.

“The days are longer then, so mosquitoes are out a lot longer, so we want to get them when they’re out,” she said. “And now the season is coming to a close, so the mosquitoes will be going dormant soon.”

That’s not to say that the SCDHS is doing nothing about the latest positive mosquito samples collected in late August and mid-September.

Health officials have placed mosquito traps all over the county, especially in areas like Lindenhurst, where mosquitoes have tested positive this year for the virus. They continue to check them daily, to monitor samples taken from them and move them to places in most need based on samples.

“We’ve been laying traps for mosquitoes where there’s been known history of the virus – both mosquito and human,” said Kelly-McGovern, who couldn’t be more specific so that traps remain undisturbed by the public.

A total of 80 mosquito samples collected by the SCDHS’ Division of Public Health this season have tested positive for the virus. To date, 33 birds have tested positive in Suffolk, and no horses have tested positive in Suffolk.

In addition, only one human was reported to be infected with . The person’s fully recovered, said health officials.

“This person recovered before we even knew he/she was diagnosed,” Kelly-McGovern noted, adding that, comparatively, this year hasn’t been bad while “2010 was bad.”

She pointed out that last year there were hundreds of positive samples, and three people in Suffolk, out of 19 infected with the virus, . Three people also died in Nassau in 2010.

In 1999, the first year the virus was detected in Suffolk, there were seven deaths.

Residents still concerned about West Nile in Lindenhurst, Kelly-McGovern advised, “Dump the water. Even if you have a bottle cap of water in your yard, dump it out. That’s where mosquitoes like to breed.”

To reduce the mosquito population around homes, residents should:

• Dispose cans, plastic containers, ceramic pots or similar water-holding containers.
• Remove discarded tires on the property.
• Ensure roof gutters drain properly, and clean clogged gutters.
• Turn over wheelbarrows when not in use.
• Change water in birdbaths.
• Clean vegetation and debris from the edges of ponds, and keep shrubs and grass trimmed.
• Clean and chlorinate pools, outdoor saunas and hot tubs.
• Drain water from pool covers.

These actions are key now, and in the Spring, said Kelly-McGovern.

“The more we educate the public, the more we reduce the mosquito population,” she said.

Health officials further advised residents wishing to avoid mosquito bites to:

• Minimize outdoor activities between dusk and dawn.
• Wear shoes and socks, long pants and long-sleeved shirts when outdoors for long periods of time, or when mosquitoes are more active.
• Use mosquito repellent when outdoors, following label directions carefully.
• Be certain all windows and doors have screens, and screens are in good repair.

For medical questions related to the virus, call 631-853-3055.

To report mosquito problems or stagnant pools of water, call the Department of Public Works’ Vector Control Division at 631-852-4270.

To report dead birds call the at 631-787-2200, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday to Friday.

For further information about WNV, visit the SCDHS website.