Mosquito Awareness Week educates California residents on preventing mosquito-borne viruses
SACRAMENTO, APRIL 17, 2019 – After the significant rainfall we received this winter,Mosquito expertsthroughout the state stress the need for Californians to dump and drain all standing water. According to theCalifornia Department of Water Resources, parts of Los Angeles, Ventura and San Diego counties received nearly 200% of the average rainfall from October 2018 to February 2019. These and other areas of the state have accumulated significant amounts of stagnant water, which can create mosquito breeding sites.
In addition to being a nuisance, mosquitoes pose a serious public health risk as infected mosquitoes can spread West Nile virus, which can cause debilitating cases of meningitis, encephalitis, and even death. West Nile virus activity was detected in 41 counties in California in 2018 and there were 215 human disease cases reported, of which 153 were the more severe neuroinvasive form. Over the last 10 years, more than 4,000 human disease cases were reported including 211 deaths.