NEW ORLEANS – The City of New Orleans Mosquito and Termite Control Board (NOMTCB) has detected West Nile virus in mosquitoes on the West Bank of Orleans Parish.
The City is continuing to take proactive measures to protect residents including applying insecticides by truck and airplane and conducting residential inspections. The City will continue these efforts and encourages residents to protect themselves by reducing the number of mosquitoes around their homes by eliminating mosquito breeding sites including containers and waste tires.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most infected individuals are asymptomatic, some people develop flu-like symptoms and a small number have serious neuroinvasive disease. Residents over 65 years old are at highest risk for complications, but everyone is at risk for infection.
SAFETY TIPS
Protecting Yourself
• Reduce mosquito exposure by limiting outdoor activities between dusk and dawn.
• Use air-conditioning and make sure window and door screens are in good repair to prevent mosquitoes from getting inside.
• If outside for long periods of time, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants.
• The CDC recommends using repellents containing EPA-registered active ingredients including, DEET, picaridin, IR3535, or oil of lemon-eucalyptus.
• When using repellent, always follow the recommendations appearing on the product label.
• Eliminate standing water around your home, where mosquitoes breed.
• Remove trash and clutter, dispose of discarded tires and containers that can hold water. Turn over wading pools, buckets, trash cans, children's toys or anything that could collect water.
• Change water weekly in containers that cannot be removed, such as pet dishes or bird baths.
• Rain barrels and other water collection devices must be screened and collected water should be used within one week.
• Aerate ornamental pools, fountains, and sugar kettles or stock them with fish.
• Report illegal dumping, water leaks, and unattended swimming pools and by calling 311.
• Tires are easily filled with water by rain and collect leaf litter, providing an ideal "incubator" for mosquito larvae. Eliminating scrap tire dumps will eliminate a prolific mosquito habitat.
Residents can place up to four (4) tires weekly, stacked curbside along with their household trash.
Tires in front of abandoned lots will not be collected; they must be moved in front of a residence with curbside collection.
Residents can also bring up to four (4) tires to the City’s Recycling Drop-off Center on the second Saturday of each month, which is located at 2829 Elysian Fields Ave. between 8:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
TRAVEL PRECAUTIONS
State health officials encourage travelers to take precautions to protect themselves from mosquitoes. Mosquitoes in other parts of the world including the Caribbean, South America, Asia, Africa, or Europe can be infected with chikungunya or dengue virus.
Mosquitoes are present in Louisiana that can transmit these viruses include the Yellow fever mosquito and the Asian Tiger mosquito. Early detection of the symptoms and avoiding mosquito bites will help prevent the disease from spreading. If you have traveled to the Caribbean or any other endemic areas of the world and have symptoms, seek medical attention immediately, notify your physician of your travel history, and avoid mosquito bites.
Residents are encouraged to contact the NOMTCB to inspect standing water or with any other questions or concerns regarding mosquitoes, St. Louis encephalitis, West Nile, or chikungunya viruses at (504) 658-2440 or email mosquitocontrol@nola.gov.
