Fairfax County Prepares for Mosquito Season
Mosquito and West Nile Virus surveillance began recently.
Mosquitoes could be bugging and biting Fairfax County residents earlier this year after a warm winter and a rain-heavy spring. Glen Barbour, a public safety information officer for the Fairfax County Health Department, said there’s no way of knowing whether that will happen, but that residents should take necessary safety measures just in case. Human cases of West Nile Virus are rare in Fairfax County, but they’re not unheard of. In 2011, eight cases of West Nile Virus were found in humans in Virginia. One case was found in Fairfax County. During its annual surveillance period, the department of health traps mosquitoes at 68 different sites around the county and test the insects for West Nile Virus. According to the health department’s …
