POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – A mosquito pool in South Bannock County in the Swan Lake area tested positive for West Nile Virus, but no humans have contracted the disease. The Bannock County Mosquito Abatement Office has increased its efforts in the area where the positive pool was found and will continue working to contain the population through the end of September.
Officials say they have traps set and test mosquitoes from all over the county.
“When we found the positive, we ramped up our larvicide efforts with both the drone and our backpack sprayers with our seasonal employees,” said Buddy Romriell, Public Works Director with the Mosquito Abatement Office. “We also do adulticide, which is the fogging that we do at night.”
Romriell said they’ll continue monitoring that pool carefully until the freeze eliminates the mosquito population. The department works to control the population through fogging efforts and zoning the county Mondays through Thursdays.
With only one positive case found in Bannock County, Romriell says there’s no need for concern.
“I wouldn’t stress too much about it,” he said. “Just kind of do the normal things, keep bug spray on you. If you’re in an area of water where there are mosquitoes, it’s not a bad idea to wear long-sleeved shirts and pants to avoid contact.”
Gino, mosquito tester expert in Bannock County, sometimes tests 1,000 insects per day for the virus. If the sample gauges at 50 or higher on the machine, the sample is shipped off to Boise for further testing and confirmation.
Romriell said this positive case was in the 500s on the scale, meaning an immediate positive West Nile case. The past few years have had limited positive cases, but officials say the particularly dry and hot year we’ve had in Eastern Idaho could lead to more West Nile Virus.
“The water pools are more stagnant and dirty and sandy,” Romriell said. “Mosquitoes prefer dirty water, so we usually do see an uptick in most cases.”
The team has already seen a decrease in mosquito numbers in their traps in the past week as the season draws to a close.
For more information on WNV, contact SIPH’s Epidemiologists, or click HERE. For information about Bannock County Mosquito Abatement, click HERE.
