For Immediate Release:
August
28, 2020
County
advises residents to continue to
“Fight
the Bite!”
FREEHOLD, NJ – The Monmouth
County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Mosquito Control Division are
reminding residents that mosquitoes are still prevalent throughout the fall
season and to take safety measures against mosquitoes and viruses they may
carry.
“As our residents are
continuing to enjoy the outdoors, mosquitoes can be a nuisance,” said
Freeholder Deputy Director Susan M. Kiley, liaison to the Monmouth County
Mosquito Control Division. “Most mosquitoes may be an inconvenience and a bite
will be itchy and swollen, but some can spread viruses such as West Nile and
Eastern Equine Encephalitis, otherwise known as EEE. Historically, there have
been cases of West Nile that have occurred in the fall and I urge residents to
protect themselves.”
The Centers for Disease
Control (CDC) recommends the following to help avoid mosquito bites:
- Control mosquito populations
indoors and outdoors
- Wear treated long-sleeved
shirts and long pants while outdoors
- Use insect repellent that the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has proven to be safe and effective that contains
one of the following active ingredients: DEET, oil of lemon eucalyptus
(OLE), picaridin, IR3535, para-methane-diol (PMD) or 2-undecanone
While the weather may begin
to get cooler, mosquitoes are still active until the first frost and will take
advantage of even small amounts of standing water to lay eggs and produce more
mosquitoes.
“It is important to not only
protect yourself from mosquitoes, but to also eliminate where mosquitoes breed
around and in your house,” said Freeholder Deputy Director Kiley. “Container
mosquitoes are the number one problem in Monmouth County. Be diligent and dump
any container that holds water weekly. It only takes seven days for a mosquito
larva to develop into an adult.”
The Monmouth County Mosquito
Control Division created a Mosquito
Habitat Checklist for residents to reference to eliminate places where
mosquitoes breed around the home.
“The Mosquito Control
Division is available for our residents to contact and request a courtesy
inspection of their property and adjacent properties,” said Freeholder Deputy
Director Kiley. “Common mosquito habitats include ditches, woodland pools,
shallow ponds, unmaintained swimming pools and ornamental ponds. Wherever there
is stagnant water, mosquitoes can develop.”
The Mosquito Control
Division helps protect residents by controlling the mosquito populations of
larvae living in water. More than 3,500 established areas of water found to
support mosquito larvae in Monmouth County are inspected by mosquito personnel
throughout the mosquito season (April through October).
For more information, call
the Monmouth County Mosquito Control Division at 732-542-3630 or go to www.visitmonmouth.com/mosquito.
# # #