This time of year, especially with the rain, mosquitoes are a growing concern.
Public information supervisor for Dayton & Montgomery County Public Health says rain does contribute because it’s breeding ground for mosquitoes.
“You want to make sure that you remove all the standing water from your yard. Mosquitoes can breed in as little as a bottle cap full of water so you really have to clear everything up,” he said.” We’re talking about things like buckets, birdbaths, swings, play toys and anything that can collect water.”
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These simple steps could often be the difference in getting bit or not.
“We’re talking about practicing good mosquito protection, of course wearing EPA approved mosquito repellent, you want to make sure you wear long sleeves whenever possible, make sure your screens are fixed in your home and remove standing water,” Suffolette said. “Another good tip is to make sure you have repellent with you in your car because you never know when you may stop or go into an area that was unplanned.”
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Suffolette also says it’s hard to know on a year-to-year basis, but the West Nile virus is always a concern.
“We do have a mosquito control program here where we’ll set traps throughout the summer to detect mosquitoes that may be carrying West Nile virus,”he said. “If we do detect mosquitoes that may be carrying West Nile virus, we will provide some educational information to the area to make sure people protect themselves and we’ll do spraying as needed in those areas.”
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Suffolette says that some mosquitoes have already started breeding
“Mosquitoes can be breeding right now, there’ll be some out there so you wanna take protection at this time.”