A recent case of West Nile Virus in Lexington is a reminder of the dangers of mosquito-borne illnesses. After the case was confirmed, crews sprayed for mosquitoes in the areas where the person who tested positive had been.
Lexington-Fayette County Health Department spokesman Clark Bradshaw said a break in the hot weather a few weeks ago might have led people to believe mosquito season was over.
“It got cool and everybody thought, ‘Well, it's fall. We're done with this.’ But then, as soon as it warmed back up, the mosquitoes came out again, and so now we had to send out people to do this,” he said.
Bradshaw said applying insect repellent before stepping outside is a good idea and offered other suggestions to reduce the chance of being bitten.
“Make sure your screens are intact and don't have holes in them. Make sure there's no standing water in your yard. That's probably the most important thing. Anywhere there's standing water, the mosquitoes can breed,” he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Nile virus is the leading cause of disease spread by mosquitoes in the contiguous U.S.
