The Town of Woodbridge has been in contact with the Woodbridge Board of Education and the Amity Regional School District to discuss suspending outdoor activities (daily from dusk through dawn) based on the recommendation of the Quinnipiack Valley Health Department (QVHD).
The Health Department made the recommendation as a precautionary measure against the EEE Virus, which is carried by mosquitos.
“We have shared the information from Quinnipiack Valley Health District with our schools and community partners and have asked that they suspend outdoor activities until further notice based on QVHD’s recommendations,” said First Selectman Beth Heller.
As of this notice, the Beecher Road School PTO’s annual Harvest Hike has been cancelled, the Massaro Community Farm showing of Valley Shakespeare’s Two Gentlemen of Verona has been rescheduled from 6 pm to 4 pm on Saturday, the Recreation Department Running Club has moved its morning activities indoors and the Amity Regional School District has cancelled outdoor activities after 6:30 pm.
Please see below for QVHD’s advisory notice and more information on the EEE Virus and other protective measures.
September 30, 2019
Today, Quinnipiack Valley Health District (QVHD) received a report that the Bethany trapping station had a Cs. melanura mosquito pool collected on September 23, 2019 test positive for eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV). According to the CDC, “Cs. melanura is not considered to be an important vector of EEEV to humans because it feeds almost exclusively on birds.”
QVHD advises residents of the QVHD to protect themselves and their children by taking personal protective measures to prevent mosquito bites and minimizing outdoor activity from dusk to dawn, when mosquitoes are most active. The Health District will continue to monitor mosquito activity and update messages until the first hard frost.
QVHD recommends the following precautionary measures:
• The suspension of school and town sponsored activities from dusk to dawn, when mosquitos are most active.
• If outdoor activity is unavoidable, especially around dawn or dusk, be sure to use insect repellent and cover bare skin.
• Use insect repellent, according to label instructions, when it is necessary to be outdoors.
• Be sure door and window screens are tight-fitting and in good repair.
• Wear shoes, socks, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt when outdoors for long periods of time. Clothing should be light-colored and made of tightly woven materials that keep mosquitoes away from the skin.
• Eliminate mosquito breeding sites by emptying standing water from buckets, barrels and other containers.
• Consider mosquito-netting for carriages, strollers and tents.
The Department of Public Health (DPH) continues to advise against unnecessary trips into mosquito breeding grounds such as marshes as the mosquitoes that transmit EEE virus are associated with freshwater swamps. Overnight camping or other substantial outdoor exposure in freshwater swamps in Connecticut should be avoided.
Visit the EPA website to learn more about which safe and effective repellent is right for you and your family: https://www.epa.gov/insect-repellents.