SAN ANTONIO - With the outbreak of West Nile virus, many people are making sure to spray on some type of repellent for protection against mosquito bites. At Fort Sam the threat of is causing workers to take action.
"We have been doing surveillance continually," said Brent Boller.
The JBSA spokesman said maintenance crews at Fort Sam Houston will be suiting up around midnight to fog key locations Thursday and Friday before dawn. They are out to kill thousand of adult mosquitoes.
"The fog - that micro-droplet - gets on theme and they can't get if off -- and they die," explained Boller.
Frank Martinez says crews have already used bagel shaped bacteria to destroy larvae in standing water. Still, too many samples of mosquitoes carrying the West Nile Virus are cropping up.
"In fact, last Wednesday we had 13 mosquito sample pools come back positive, so we can see there is an upward trend," said Boller.
Boller said the fogging is done overnight for everyone's safety. Workers don’t think the fog will drift to neighborhoods nearby as they treat target spots near the Honor Guard Horse Stables on the West Side, the Fort Sam Houston Golf Course on the East Side, and a drainage ditch.
“We are after the mosquitoes. That’s the ideal time -- dead of night when everybody is sleeping. Doors are shut and windows are shut,” said Frank Martinez with the pest control crew.
Visiting from the Woodlands area outside Houston, Trudy Moore understands why the attack on mosquitoes is necessary. A neighbor died years ago infected with West Nile.
"I was very concerned and went through the yard to make sure we didn't have any standing water," said Moore.
