Local health officials say now that the rain has passed, this is a great time to tackle the standing water that may breed mosquitos that spread the Zika virus, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
“Community involvement is crucial in reducing the mosquito population,” said Dr. Colleen Bridger, director for Metro Health. “We are treating standing water on public property, but we will only make progress in reducing mosquitos if we enlist the help of everybody on all properties.”
The same mosquito transmits not just Zika, but Chikungnuya, and Dengue, and it breeds in very small amounts of water.The Metro Health District says vases, pet bowls, flowerpot saucers, discarded tires, birdbaths, and buckets are the most likely places for the mosquito to breed.
They lay eggs on the walls of water filled containers, and when water covers the eggs, they hatch very aggressive mosquitos which bite humans during the daytime.
Metro Health is engaging an a robust program of spraying public areas and parks, but point out that property owners have to do their part to rid the area of mosquitos.
So far all of the cases of Zika confirmed in Bexar County have been in people who have traveled to other places and gotten the disease there. But locally contacted ZIka cases have been confirmed in the Rio Grande Valley, and are likely in Bexar County, possibly this year.
IMAGE; GETTY