County: Take precautions against mosquitoes

Amid mosquito season during the pandemic, Los Angeles County officials are reminding residents that these insects are not a vector for COVID-19 but that people should continue to practice solutions to reduce their populations.

The southern region has been hard hit by mosquitoes and 25 samples have been positive for West Nile Virus across communities countywide, according to the Greater L.A. County Vector Control District.

L.A. County Department of Public Health reported its first West Nile virus death of the season recently — an elderly resident of South L.A.

No positive samples have been reported in the Santa Clarita Valley, but Vector Control has received several complaints about mosquitoes, many about a new species: the Aedes mosquitoes, which are commonly known as the Asian tiger mosquito and the yellow fever mosquito.

“Greater Los Angeles County is also home to invasive Aedes mosquitoes, which can transmit Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever viruses,” read the website.

These mosquitoes also tend to bite in the daytime and fly low around the ankles, according to Mary-Joy Coburn, director of Community Affairs at Vector Control.

Santa Clarita resident Vanessa Williamson said she grew concerned when her husband’s legs became very swollen after being bitten multiple times recently by what mosquito control inspectors with the county told her was “the tiger mosquito.”

“Both his legs looked like he’s been through a war zone,” she said. While her husband did not present any related symptoms, such as fever, she did question whether mosquitoes could transfer COVID-19 amid the pandemic.

“It is important to remember that COVID-19 is not transmitted through the bite of a mosquito,” according to Vector Control’s website.