[ad_1]
As Los Angeles has experienced the warmest temperatures of the season so far, officials from the San Gabriel Valley have warned that no clue pools and other standing water in the Eton burn area could become breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes.
The destruction caused by the January fires was, “area filled with thousands of unapproved swimming pools, damaged purification systems and debris — said Jason Farned, district manager for the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control Districts during last week’s virtual community meeting, which spans 26 cities in Southland, including Altadena and Pasadena.
“Cool weather temporarily suppressed mosquito activity, but it changes rapidly as we move further into the spring,” Farnedo said. His warning was first reported by the Los Angeles Daily News.
Mosquitoes rely on standing water to thrive and reproduce in warm weather conditions, and swimming pools create fertile ground due to population explosions. The temperatures in Altadena surged above 90 degrees on Monday, according to the National Weather Service.
Authorities have identified around 2,700 swimming pools in the area that could be of concern, with about 1,300 pools within the burn zone, and about 1,400 filled with ashes and debris around, Vector Control District spokesman Anais Medinadias said.
The number does not explain septic tanks and ponds that may not have been discovered through air monitoring, Diaz said.
However, a single swimming pool can breed up to 3 million mosquitoes in a month.
“This is a huge concern for us,” Diaz said. “We really want to focus on boundary pools and work inwards because we want to make sure that the pool closest to the community where people are still in is breeding or breeding, and does not increase the risk of disease transmission.”
One of the main diseases of concern is the West Nile virus, a disease already endemic to most of the United States, including the LA region, and can cause severe and potentially fatal brain inflammation, among other serious problems. There were 35 confirmed cases of the West Nile virus in LA County in 2024, according to data from the LA County Department of Public Health.
Dengue, another virus that can be spread by mosquitoes, can cause high fever, body pain, vomiting and rashes. LA County recorded 234 cases of dengue fever last year.
Many of last year’s dengue cases were associated with migration to hot, humid locations where the virus is commonly spread, such as the Caribbean. However, warming temperatures driven by climate change in Southern California also contribute to an increase in local cases.
And while the range of disease-carrying mosquitoes is usually limited to about a mile, anyone traveling to the Eton burn area should be worried about the transmission of the disease, Diaz said.
The same goes for residents on the other side of LA County, who officials from the county’s West Vector Control District, including the Palisade region in the Pacific, which was affected by the Palisade Fire, said they are blessed with mosquito problems this year.
“The swimming pool in the Palisade fire area is a concern regarding mosquito breeding,” executive director Aaron Algay said in an email. “Our district will respond to all service requests for unauthorized pools in the Palisade Fire Area throughout the summer.”
The agency has not completed estimating the number of properties affected, Algai said. However, temperatures tend to rise earlier inland areas than along the coast. This means that mosquito activity in Pallisard may not increase until the second half of the season.
The next few weeks will be important in Altadena, where mercury is already beginning to climb.
The treatment plan for the affected pool agent includes the application of larvae that can provide mosquito control for up to 90 days.
Introduction of mosquito larvae and pup-eating species (affinis), is the most efficient way to limit mosquito breeding. But many of the pools affected by the fire are not currently inhabited by fish due to ashes and debris, Diaz said.
Farnedo said officials from the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District prioritized work based on the proximity of the property to the adjacent community, while also according to requests submitted by property owners.
“The position to promote mosquito breeding is a violation of public health and safety codes, but we are trying to provide as much support as possible during this transition period, as many property owners understand that compliance options are limited,” he said.
Officials from both firelands encouraged residents to reach out to local agencies to submit service requests or notify them of whether there are any swimming pools or spas that will not be maintained. Both agencies said there is no additional cost to property owners to request testing or treatment.
But beyond what the San Gabriel Valley district maintains in its financial resources, the costs could quickly swell, Diaz said. Agents collect property taxes of $20 per $20 each year, but they need to utilize emergency reserves to cover an estimated $306,000, which is only the first round of mosquito treatment.
The Eton Fire Zone will require at least two more treatments this year, and may require escalated reactions, such as truck-mounted pesticide applications, covering a wider area, Diaz said. Additional funding could result from a request for resource meetings by a county or state, or a refund from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Although Vector Control District has responded to wildfire regions in the past, Diaz noted that the scale of Etonfire destruction is challenging yet unremarkable in California.
“That’s unprecedented,” she said.
[ad_2]Source link
