by KYW’s Brad Segall
Our rainy spring meant more opportunities for mosquitoes to find breeding grounds, but it doesn’t necessarily mean we will see an increased threat of West Nile virus in the Philadelphia area.
State environmental officials say they have no concrete information that shows more rain means a greater threat of West Nile. What they do know however is that a lot of rain provides more breeding opportunities for mosquitoes that wouldn’t have been there if the weather had been drier. That’s why homeowners need to be vigilant when it comes to getting rid of standing water.
Dennis Harney is with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection:
“They need to make sure that their gutters and birdbaths and kiddie pools and recycling bins; anything else that has water in it that doesn’t necessarily need water should be dumped out.”
Last week there was spraying in parts of Bucks County where DEP surveillance identified the types of mosquitoes that usually carry West Nile.