East Valley storm creates breeding ground for mosquitoes

The storm that brought heavy rain and flooding to the Mecca and Thermal areas hasn’t made the fight against the spread of West Nile virus any easier.

Due to the flooding, a lot of standing water has been left behind –a breeding ground for mosquitoes thatcarry the virus.

To combat this, the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District is sending crews out totrouble spots to treat the water with a pesticide that specifically targets mosquito larvae.

“Treatments will start today and be increasing on Friday and all through the early part of next week, and then, in about sevendays, about 10 days, we’ll be seeing if there’s an increase in adult mosquitoes, and then we’ll assess if we need toincrease spraying for adults,” said Greg White, a vector ecologist with the CVMVCD.

Spraying scheduled for the East Valley before the storm will continue through Friday.

So far this year, fourhuman cases of West Nile virus have been reported in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. None are inthe Coachella Valley.