Residents Encouraged to Take Precautions to Prevent West Nile

The Village of Hinsdale has been notified by the DuPage County Health Department that mosquitoes collected in one of the Village’s gravid traps have tested positive for the West Nile Virus. The trap is located near the intersection of East Walnut and North Elm Streets in Hinsdale. The Village’s mosquito abatement contractor, Clarke Environmental, will be conducting inspection of any new and existing breeding sites in the area and performing larval control treatments accordingly. Services include the treatment of 1,705 catch basins, inlets and manholes using an extended residual slow release insecticide for late season control.

There is a provision in the Village’s service contract for adult control spraying.  However, spraying for adult mosquitoes is the least effective control method, because it provides only temporary, localized benefits. Treating catch basins with a larvicide is the best defense in managing the West Nile Virus. Therefore, the Village intends to follow this best practice and continue with its program of controlled treatments of Village catch basins.

To reduce the risk of West Nile Virus further, residents should make certain to take proper precautionary measures to avoid contact with mosquitoes.  These measures include wearing long sleeves and pants, limiting time spent outdoors between dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, and wearing insect repellent containing DEET, Picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Residents also are urged to eliminate potential mosquito breeding sites by cleaning roof gutters, storing outdoor containers upside down and emptying birdbaths every few days.