Mosquito spraying in Loves Park to occur overnight Tuesday

LOVES PARK, Ill. (WTVO) — The City of Loves Park says outdoor spraying to prevent mosquito population growth will take place in the overnight hours beginning Tuesday night.

The city has partnered with Clarke Outdoor Spraying for the operation, which will begin after 10 p.m.

A truck-mounted sprayer will distribute an ultra-low volume spray meant to kill mature mosquitoes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, truck spraying poses minimal risk to pets, animals, and the environment, but can cause eye irritation to someone who is outside when the spraying takes place.

Mosquitoes can carry illnesses such as West Nile Virus, which has been detected in Winnebago County.

There is no vaccine or medicines to treat West Nile Virus in humans. Symptoms include fever, headache, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea, or rash. About 1 in 5 people who become infected develop symptoms. About 1 in 150 people develop a serious, sometimes fatal, illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .

The Winnebago County Health Department recommends the “3 R’s” to avoid becoming infected:

• REDUCE – make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut. Eliminate, or refresh each week, all sources of standing water where mosquitoes can breed, including water in bird baths, ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, old tires, and any other containers.
• REPEL – when outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants and a light-colored, long-sleeved shirt, and apply an EPA-registered insect repellent that contains DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, IR 3535, para-menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone according to label instructions. Consult a physician before using repellents on infants.
• REPORT – report locations where you see water sitting stagnant for more than a week such as roadside ditches, flooded yards, and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes. The local health department or city government may be able to add larvicide to the water, which will kill any mosquito larvae.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.