WEST NILE VIRUS
This site will show you the best means to protect yourself and your family from West Nile Virus (WNV), to identify and control mosquito breeding sources around the home, and how you can assist local public health officials in their surveillance efforts.

The first confirmed human case of WNV in California was diagnosed in Ontario, California in August, 2002. The virus was then discovered in California birds in 2003. Since its California introduction, through August 28, 2007, there have been 2320 reported cases of WNV in humans. Most of these cases live within the central valley and warm interiors of the state. To date, Humboldt County has reported only one human case of WNV, and that individual was likely infected during travel outside of Humboldt County.

The Department of Health and Human Services Public Health Branch and Division of Environmental Health perform monitoring and surveillance programs for WNV activity in our area. These include a dead bird/squirrel testing program for the presence of the virus, mosquito surveys for the presence of the vector Culex mosquito, and reporting of human and equine cases of WNV. Environmental Health provides information on mosquito breeding source reduction, larval control, and investigation of breeding sources.

The carrier mosquito, Culex, breeds primarily in standing water in artificial places (bird baths, buckets, etc.) rather than in natural settings (marsh and wetlands), so the removal of breeding sources is vital. The extent to which the Culex mosquito may be present in Humboldt County is not accurately known, each year mosquito surveillance identifies small numbers distributed sparsely throughout the Ferndale and Eureka plains. About 97% of the mosquito species inventory within Humboldt County involves other mosquito species, not normally implicated in the WNV transmission cycle.

Our climate, the local mosquito-virus activity, the lack of other mosquito-borne viral illnesses, and the several years of recorded WNV surveillance on the north coast suggest that a local outbreak of human cases of WNV is unlikely.

BEST BASIC STRATEGIES INCLUDE:

1. Drain standing water - Kick the bucket or change water in troughs, wading pools, or bird baths weekly to remove breeding sources.
   
   
2. Limit activities at dawn and dusk, wear long sleeves and pants, and use mosquito repellant according to label directions.
   
   
3. Travel to other areas of California or the U S where the virus is active may result in increased risk of exposure to infected mosquitoes. Notify your physician of any flu-like illness.