West Nile Virus (WNV) infected mosquitoes have been identified in Woodbridge, which now joins a list of Connecticut towns identified earlier this year including Bethany, Franklin, Greenwich, Madison, New Haven, Waterford, West Haven, Weston, Bridgeport, Darien, Easton, New Canaan, Stamford, Stratford, and Waterbury.
"The current warm weather and high humidity provide ideal conditions for further amplification of West Nile virus and this is likely to continue as we move into August" said Dr. Theodore Andreadis, Director of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES). "We urge everyone to prevent mosquito bites by using insect repellent and covering bare skin, especially during dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active.”
The State of Connecticut Mosquito Management Program is a collaborative effort involving the Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, the Department of Public Health, the Department of Agriculture, and the University of Connecticut Department of Pathobiology and Veterinary Science. These agencies are responsible for monitoring the potential public health threat of mosquito-borne diseases.
The CAES maintains a network of 91 mosquito-trapping stations in 72 municipalities throughout the state. Mosquito traps are set Monday – Thursday nights at each site every ten days on a rotating basis. Mosquitoes are grouped (pooled) for testing according to species, collection site, and date. Positive findings are reported to local health departments and on the CAES website at http://www.ct.gov/caes/mosquitotesting.
For information on West Nile and eastern equine encephalitis viruses and how to prevent mosquito bites, visit the Connecticut Mosquito Management Program Web site at www.ct.gov/mosquito.
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Additional resources for residents include:
QVHD Article for Woodbridge: http://www.woodbridgect.org/DocumentCenter/View/2028/QVHD_West_Nile_Virus_Article_for_Woodbridge
Controlling Mosquitos: http://www.woodbridgect.org/DocumentCenter/View/2025/Control_Mosquitoes_CHIKV_DENV_ZIKA
Mosquito Bite Prevention: http://www.woodbridgect.org/DocumentCenter/View/2026/Mosquito_bite_prevention
Septic Tank Fact Sheet: http://www.woodbridgect.org/DocumentCenter/View/2027/SepticTankFactSheetEnglishNCEZID
CDC’s webpage on WNV symptoms, diagnosis and treatment: https://www.cdc.gov/westnile/symptoms/index.html