Justin Ries
Staff Writer
The city of Claremont recently had two positive sample cases of West Nile Virus as of Sept. 1.
As of Sept. 21, there is also one positive West Nile Virus mosquito sample in La Verne, according to SGV Mosquito.
The virus is a mosquito-borne illness that can cause flu-like symptoms from a bite.
“I have been doing this for 17 years in Claremont, and we are seeing more cases and more detections,” Bevin Handel, spokesperson for the city of Claremont, said.
West Nile Virus is endemic, which means that it happens every year. An endemic is a disease, plant, animal, or problem that is consistently present and predictable in a specific region.
In order to detect the West Nile Virus, the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District has a surveillance department that sets up traps across 26 San Gabriel Valley cities and unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County within the San Gabriel Valley.
“We are essentially a public health agency or a special district that primarily focuses on vectors and insects that can transmit a disease,” said Anais Medina Diaz, spokeswoman for the district.
The district traps and tests mosquitoes and birds every week.
San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District traps mosquitoes and tests them to see if they have the West Nile Virus. The Culex mosquito, found in California, normally carries the virus, which is found in California.
California has seen a higher number in cases of the West Nile Virus this year than in recent years. Even though there has been a higher number of cases, humans can not transmit the virus back to mosquitoes, which are called dead-end hosts.
“We have reached 100 human cases and we are still very much in the season,” Dr. Aiman Halai, Medical Epidemiologist at Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, said.
The last time there were over 100 cases was eight years ago.
Having this many cases makes it key to have communication between all parties from San Gabriel Valley Mosquito Public Health Department to the residents of Claremont.
“When I first heard about it, it was on social media, so their city of Claremont website,” Jeannie Stoll, resident of Claremont said.
“We have been communicating through our city letter and through our social media to just say, ‘Hey, it has been detected,’” Handel said
“It is not super common to get it into human beings,” Handel said.
“I think it is really important for the community to know, and usually the city is pretty good about putting things out on social media,” Stoll said.
The best way to make sure residents do not attract Culex mosquitoes is to make sure the residents check all their water on their property.
“We always want to make sure throughout the year, but especially during the spring, summertime, we want to let our residents know that they need to be looking at their properties,” Handel said.
“Especially if there is standing water, breeding grounds, and they need to know if there are holes in their screens,” Handel said.
There is also personal care that people can take.
According to the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District you should use mosquito and insect repellent before going outdoors. It is recommended that people wear light-colored clothing and long sleeve shirts outdoors.
“Everyone has a role to play with mosquito prevention, there is personal protection and there is also community protection,” Halai said.
Justin Ries can be reached at justin.ries@laverne.edu.
Justin Ries is a junior journalism major with a concentration in broadcast journalism, and is a staff writer for the Campus Times.
