Cathleen Drinan
Special to the Express
With two human cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and one goat that has died from it, and twelve towns at critical risk, it was time for the Department of Public Health to have a conference call for health agents to be informed.
A second round of aerial spraying for mosquitoes in areas of southeastern Massachusetts was scheduled to begin Wednesday evening, August 21, and to continue for several evenings. It remains crucially important for people in communities at critical, high and moderate risk for EEE to continue to take personal precautions against mosquito bites. These steps include using EPA-approved bug-spray, wearing long sleeves and pants outdoors to reduce exposed skin, and cancelling outdoor activities in the hours from dusk to dawn when mosquitoes are most active.
Please be aware that while the count of live mosquitoes lessens after an aerial spraying, our risk stays the same. The virus is still out there in remaining mosquitoes!
The ability to spray any area is weather dependent. The pilot must have maximum flexibility to work with changes in the weather. As a result, we will not know for certain which towns will be sprayed on which night. A map will show the areas of spray the following afternoon.
The list of communities entirely within the spray zone (except for exclusions, such as organic farms and surface water supplies):
Bristol County: Acushnet, Berkley, Dighton, Freetown, Norton, Raynham, Taunton.
Plymouth County: Bridgewater, East Bridgewater, Carver, Hanson, Halifax, Lakeville, Middleborough, Pembroke, Plympton, Rochester, West Bridgewater, Whitman
Communities partially in the spray zone:
Bristol County: Attleboro, Dartmouth, Easton, Fairhaven, Fall River, Mansfield, New Bedford, Rehoboth, Somerset, Swansea.
Plymouth County: Abington, Brockton, Duxbury, Hanover, Kingston, Marion, Marshfield, Mattapoisett, Norwell, Plymouth, Rockland, Wareham
The following towns are at critical risk for EEE:
Middleborough, Carver, Lakeville, Wareham, Rochester, Acushnet, New Bedford, Raynham, Norton, Easton, Freetown
Please see the following links for more information:
www.mass.gov/dph/mosquito
https://www.mass.gov/guides/aerial-mosquito-control-summer-2019#-latest-spray-updates-