Mosquito spraying spreads to other cities

Trucks with spraying equipment could be hitting the streets there by Friday morning, Peavey said.

Dorsalis Aedes and Squamiger Aedes mosquitos, common in salt marshes, are highly aggressive and travel in excess of 25 miles a day. As many as 10 to 20 were landing on abatement district employees in Redwood Shores earlier this week. After spraying, that number dropped to one.

Peavey called yesterday's attempt to cut the mosquito population "extremely successful."

Last week, county officials announced the discovery of West Nile in a dead crow found in Redwood City on July 28. Now they are dealing with an onslaught of calls about dead birds throughout the county.

The abatement district collected between three and five dead birds a day since the announcement. About 100 of those birds were sent to a state lab for testing. To get tested, the birds must be freshly dead bluejays, crows, ravens or hawks. The state is not testing smaller birds, Peavey said.

Officials are preparing themselves for human cases, which are expected to show up in the next several weeks.

About 1 percent of people become seriously ill from the virus, spread by mosquitos that feed on infected birds. Most people who are infected never become ill, but about 20 percent suffer flu-like symptoms.

To protect themselves from West Nile the county is suggesting people drain standing water around the house where mosquitos lay eggs, limit outdoor activities at dusk and dawn, dress in long sleeves and use insect repellent.

West Nile, which first hit the United States in 1999 in New York, killed more than 560 people in the past five years as it marched westward. Last year was the first for the virus to appear in areas west of the Continental Divide. In California, five people have died this year.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.