The Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District will be spraying in Livermore for the third time this month to suppress West Nile virus activity.
Tonight (Sept. 21), district personnel will apply Evergreen ULV (5-25) ground public health insecticide by a truck mounted ultra-low volume sprayer in three different parts of the city.
The eastern and southwestern portions of Livermore have already received the same treatment.
The areas identified for tonight include Jack Williams Park and the neighborhood surrounding Max Baer Park with Concannon Boulevard as the southern boundary and Diamond Boulevard and El Caminito as the northern boundary.
A third spray will take place close to Interstate 580. District officials said this smaller treatment using the same insecticide will be conducted by a hand-held device and target the undeveloped area between Constitution Drive as the southern boundary and North Canyons Parkway as the northern boundary, to the west of Collier Canyon Road.
"The public has helped the district find pockets of West Nile virus in Livermore by calling in dead birds and mosquito concerns," said general manager Ryan Clausnitzer in a statement from the district. "Adult mosquito control treatments are the fastest way to quickly get the number of mosquitoes down, but we will continue to need the public’s help to remove areas of standing water where mosquitoes grow," he added.
People living in the residential areas near the treatment zones are encouraged to stay indoors during the spraying hours, which are limited to nighttime. District officials said the insecticide will break down in sunlight.
As of Sept. 15, California has had 567 dead birds, 3,732 mosquito samples, 147 sentinel chickens, and 124 humans test positive for West Nile virus. Six people in the state have died from West Nile virus this year. With the heavy rain from the winter, along with scattered showers in spring and summer, mosquitoes have more water to breed in.
Information about mosquitoes and West Nile virus can be found at www.mosquitoes.org.
Residents can request mosquito fish for their fish ponds, horse troughs, etc. by contacting the district office at 510-783-7744. For information concerning West Nile virus symptoms, prevention or testing, contact the Alameda County Public Health Department at 510-267-8001.
