By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
Relief from those pesky mosquitos is on the way in towns along the Allegheny River valley and its tributaries.
Duflo Spray Chemical Co. brought its airplane earlier this week to the Great Valley Airport which is used as a staging area to spray a larvicide over wetland areas.
“We are trying to move quickly to respond to residents complaints,” Public Health Director Dr. Kevin D. Watkins told members of the Board of Health on Wednesday.
Health Department summer interns have been monitoring mosquito larvae in breeding pools in wetland areas and adult mosquito traps for the past six weeks.
Some of the traps contained more than 100 mosquitoes after 24 hours. In Allegany, for example, one trap showed 136 mosquitoes on Birch Run, while a trap on Gile Hollow Road in Hinsdale showed 215 mosquitoes after a day.
Watkins said the health department has been waiting for nearly four weeks for Jeff Duflo, the owner and founder of Duflo Spray Chemical Co., Lowville, to have enough time to come to Cattaraugus County to spray for nuisance mosquitoes.
Rainy spring weather that filled the breeding pools is largely to blame for the explosion in mosquitoes across the region, Watkins said.
Rain Thursday morning delayed spraying over portions of Olean that were not hit Wednesday. Portville and Westons Mills were also scheduled to be sprayed on Thursday, weather permitting, according to Watkins.
The airplane flies very low during the application of larvicide to wetland breeding areas. On Wednesday morning, a St. Bonaventure University official reported a low-flying plane buzzing areas of the campus. The plane was spraying for mosquitoes, the official was told.
“The larvicide application is designed to reduce the mosquito population by targeting larvae before they become biting adults,” Watkins said.
“The department appreciates the public’s patience as we work to provide some relief from mosquitoes and reduce the risk of mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE),” he said.
None of the pools of mosquitoes the health department sent to the state Laboratory showed signs of West Nile virus or EEE, Watkins said. The last case of EEE in the county was in 2019 and the last West Nile virus case was in 2021. Both can be fatal to humans.
While the larvacide will keep mosquito larvae in breeding pools from becoming adults, it will take up to a week or so for relief. Adults already hatched will continue to seek a blood meal.
Mosquitoes can lay eggs in any container around your home with water such as empty buckets, flowerpots, birdbaths and clogged gutters — so empty them regularly. In the meantime:
- Use insect repellent that contains DEET, picaridin, or oil of lemon eucalyptus when outdoors.
- Wear protective clothing, such as long sleeves, long pants, and socks, especially during dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active.
- Make sure window and door screens are intact to keep mosquitoes from entering your home.
- Protect children and infants with mosquito netting and proper repellents suited for their age group.
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