Friday, June 14, 2013
Patch offers mosquito prevention tips, and the map below shows the number of West Nile cases last summer.
After a particularly tough year for the West Nile virus in 2012, Massachusetts health officials are bracing for what could be another busy summer for the mosquito-borne illness. Although, with so many factors playing into the problem, the track of West Nile is not an easy one to predict, said Kevin Cranston, director of the Bureau of Infectious Disease for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. “We can’t pin down all of the elements that go into why one season is bad and another season is not,” Cranston said. But if this summer is similar to last summer—marked by extended periods of very hot weather—some parts of the state could see a high number of cases as occurred in 2012. To give residents a sense of West Nile’s prevalence in …
Monday, October 15, 2012
The temperatures did not drop low enough for long enough on Saturday morning for a deep freeze.
Saturday morning's temperatures dipped to 29 degrees, not cold enough for the Boards of Health to consider lifting the evening organized activity ban in both. "It never reached 28," Town Manager Michael Lombardo said on Saturday. It needed to drop to 28 degrees or lower for four hours or longer for a hard freeze, he said. A hard freeze was needed to lift the ban. Earlier this month, the Boards of Health in both towns put in place an organized activity ban from 5 p.m. through 8 a.m. because of the threat of Eastern equine encephalitis. On Thursday, WHDH-TV meteorologist Pete Bouchard told Hamilton-Wenham Patch that there was a good chance of a hard freeze on Saturday morning. But Lombardo said National Weather Service records indicate that …
Friday, August 31, 2012
The Health Agent made the announcement Friday.
Hamilton will spray for mosquitos Tuesday after the Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced Friday that Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) has been detected in mosquitoes collected from town. According to the Hamilton Board of Health: "This is a precautionary measure to reduce the risk of EEE, targeted truck spraying in the area along Essex Street and roads east of Essex Street will be conducted in Hamilton on Tuesday, September 4, between the hours of 8 p.m. and 2 a.m., weather permitting. Residents in the targeted areas are asked to stay indoors during the spraying." The Hamilton Board of Health is working closely with the Northeast Massachusetts Mosquito Control and Wetlands Management District, according to the press …
Area communities are spraying in an attempt to fend off West Nile Virus. Do you agree with this decision?
As health officials battle a record-breaking West Nile Virus outbreak in the United States, many Massachusetts communities are resorting to pesticide spraying. After a mosquito tested positive in Hamilton earlier this month, the two towns were sprayed. Salem Officials Wednesday announced the Board of Health had decided to spray as a precautionary measure on either Wednesday or Thursday. So far, there have been no positive tests for mosquitos in Danvers this summer The issue of pesticide use is often a heated one, and we're wondering what your thoughts on the issue are as health officials make the decision to resort to spraying in an attempt to prevent the spread of West Nile Virus. Are you in favor of community mosquito spraying? Let …
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) held a telebriefing this week to inform residents of the outbreak and pass on tips to prevent mosquito bites.
"We're in the midst of one of the largest West Nile virus outbreaks ever seen in the United States," said Dr. Lyle Petersen of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), during a telebriefing Wednesday to provide an update on the West Nile outbreak based on reports from state health departments. Texas has reported the most cases, however, 47 states, including Massachusetts, have reported West Nile virus infections in people, birds or mosquitoes, the update said. Alaska, Hawaii, and Vermont have not reported any cases. In Massachusetts, so far this year 119 mosquito pools have tested positive for West Nile, according to the state, and there has been one reported human case, in Middlesex County. According to the CDC update, 1,118…
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Mosquito spraying is planned for both Hamilton and Wenham on Tuesday night.
Spraying for mosquitoes is planned for Tuesday night in both Hamilton and Wenham. An animal-biting mosquito recently tested positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis in Hamilton, according to the Board of Health. Hamilton Town Manager announced the spraying in a Connect-CTY call on Monday evening to town residents. The spraying will happen along Essex Street and streets to th east of Essex Street between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. on Tuesday night. In Wenham, there has been no positive test for EEE or West Nile Virus but Health Agent Greg Bernard said spraying is planned anyway as a precautionary measure on Tuesday night, also from 8 p.m. on Tuesday through 2 a.m. on Wednesday. "The targeted areas will include areas along Route 97 from Topsfield to …
Concerned
7:52 am on Monday, October 15, 2012
I haven't seen a mosquito in at least 3 weeks. Enough already. Haven't they sprayed twice? I'm all for being safe but this is just a waste of time now. more ›