RISK INCREASES
West Nile-carrying mosquitoes widespread, Pa. says in warning
There’s a louder than usual buzz in Pennsylvania this summer, and that’s not a good thing.
Heavy rain throughout the state this year have produced perfect mosquito breeding conditions, and, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the percentage of the insects carrying the West Nile virus is at the highest level since it appeared in the state in 2000.
That means the disease, which has infected one person in the state this year and more than 150 people in Pennsylvania in the past six years, is on track to pose “an unusually higher than normal risk,” the DEP said Friday.
The virus also is more widespread, having been found in 51 of the state’s 67 counties as of the end of July.
“With record levels of West Nile virus activity in mosquitoes already found, we are at increased risk of disease from a bite of a mosquito. It is imperative that Pennsylvania residents take commonsense precautions to protect themselves from mosquitoes,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell.
Those precautionary measures include eliminating places where mosquitoes can lay eggs, using insect repellent and wearing long pants and long-sleeve shirts in mosquito-prone areas.
The state also is spraying pesticides on a targeted basis, and the Pennsylvania Department of Health has issued an advisory through the Health Advisory Network to alert medical professionals about the risk of West Nile virus this year.
The Allegheny County Health