Larimer County Begins Spraying To Fight West Nile Virus

click to expand

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)- Crews in Larimer County will begin spraying to fight West Nile Virus on Monday. They will spray parts of Fort Collins after mosquitoes there tested positive for the potentially deadly virus.

In addition to spraying, health officials want residents to do their part in protecting themselves. Those actions include draining standing water since it's a breeding ground for mosquitoes, wearing long sleeves and long pants in the evening to keep mosquitoes from biting exposed flesh, and applying mosquito repellent with DEET.

A culex tarsalis mosquito (credit: nathistoc.bio.uci.edu)

"We try to do our best to not spray every year," said Larimer County Health Department spokeswoman Katie O'Donnell. "We're sitting at three cases for Larimer County so far this year. However we know that there could be a three to four week lag in our case reporting."

The spraying for mosquitoes will begin after 8 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday.

(credit: CBS)

"It only lasts for about an hour in the air," said O'Donnell about the spray. "The chemical levels that we use are so minimal it would take quite a bit of ingestion for it to even begin to impact you."

Some cities in Northern Colorado have already begun spraying, including Loveland and Windsor.

There are six reported cases of West Nile Virus in Colorado, including Weld County, Larimer County and Bent County.