Local public health officials announce that Health Department staff have collected mosquito samples testing positive for West Nile Virus. The samples were collected from a pool within Galesburg Township. The batches of mosquitoes were collected the week of August 28, 2023.
These are the first positive environmental samples collected this year in Knox County. “It is common for the Health Department to identify West Nile virus in mosquitoes in Knox County,” reports Wil Hayes, Assistant Public Health Administrator for the Knox County Health Department. “We expect that mosquito activity will last into the fall season,” noted Hayes, “and remind individuals that preventing exposure to mosquitoes is the best way to avoid contracting the virus.”
The best way to prevent West Nile disease or any other mosquito-borne illness is to reduce the number of mosquitoes around your home and to take personal precautions to avoid mosquito bites. Precautions include the three “R’s” – Reduce, Repel and Report.
- Reduce exposure – avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are most active, especially between dusk and dawn.
- Make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears for other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut, especially at night.
- Eliminate all sources of standing water where mosquitoes can breed, including water in bird baths, ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, old tires, and any other receptacles.
- Repel- when outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt, and apply insect repellent that contains DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535, according to label instructions. Consult a physician before using repellents on infants.
- Report- In communities where there are organized mosquito control programs, contact your municipal government to report areas of stagnant water in roadside ditches, flooded yards and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes.
Surveillance for West Nile virus includes laboratory tests on mosquito batches, dead crows, blue jays, robins, and other perching birds, as well as testing sick horses and humans with West Nile-like disease symptoms. If you observe a sick or dying bird, contact the Knox County Health Department at 309-344-2224. They will then determine if the bird will be picked up for testing.
For more information about mosquito breeding sites or West Nile virus, contact the Knox County Health Department at 309-344-2224; or visit the IDPH website at idph.state.il.us.
***Courtesy of the Knox County Health Department***
