United States: Orange County Mosquito Control announced on Thursday that after the state Department of Health confirmed that two people contracted the disease in Orange County, it will concentrate on eradicating the mosquito species implicated in transmitting dengue fever, an arbovirus.
Orange County stated that the two individuals who were infected did not travel out of the county or even within the US.
About Dengue spread
According to Steve Harrison, manager for Orange County Mosquito Control, “We have both daytime and nighttime crews responding to the situation,” and “They are providing control measures, recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to prevent further local transmission of the dengue virus,” as clickorlando.com reported.
Dengue is transmitted by a species of mosquito known as Aedes aegypti, which has been characterized as a species that moves short distances of a radius of approximately 200 yards.
This is the first time in many years that the Florida Department of Health has reported an infectious transmission of dengue in Orange County.
Till now, as per the FDOH, 24 cases have been documented in Orange County, but these were cases where the patient contracted the disease in other countries or in other counties in the United States where the disease is prevalent.
What more do the experts have to say?
According to Harrison, “This virus is only spread by mosquitoes,” and “The only way for a human to contract dengue is if they are bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus. The mosquito can only get the virus by biting a person who has it,” as clickorlando.com reported.
“Fortunately, the mosquito that primarily carries this virus does not fly very far; it stays close to where it originally contracted the virus. At the direction of the state of Florida Department of Health, we are targeting our control efforts in the areas of concern to prevent any further transmission,” he continued.
The Orange County Mosquito Control goes out in the county frequently to spray for mosquitoes.
The agency stated to the public that all chemicals it employs are recognized by the US Environmental Protection Agency and friendly to human and animal consumers.
Those Orange County residents suffering a mosquito problem in or around their property can turn to Mosquito Control by calling Orange County’s 311 information line to report such a problem.