Things to Know
- Adult mosquitoes don’t generally survive high winds during a hurricane. However, the mosquito eggs laid in the soil by floodwater mosquitoes during previous floods will hatch. This results in very large populations of floodwater mosquitoes.
- Most of these mosquitoes are considered nuisance mosquitoes.In general, nuisance mosquitoes do not spread viruses that make people sick. The types of mosquitoes that can spread viruses may increase 2 weeks to 2 months after a hurricane, especially in areas that did not flood but received more rainfall than usual.
- Because people spend more time outside cleaning up after a hurricane or flood, they are more likely to be bitten by nuisance mosquitoes. A
How to Protect Yourself & Family
- Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants.
- Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents with one of the following active ingredients: DEET, picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus, para-menthane-diol, or 2-undecanone.
- See EPA’s search tool here.
- Always follow the product label instructions.
- Reapply insect repellent as directed.
- Do not spray repellent on the skin under clothing.
- If you are also using sunscreen, apply sunscreen first and insect repellent second.
- Prevent mosquito bites
Steps to Control Mosquitoes Inside and Outside Your Home
- After a hurricane or flood, the health department or mosquito control district will often take steps to reduce the mosquito population.
- Residents can take steps to help control mosquitoes in and around their homes to prevent mosquito bites.
Helpful Links
https://www.biogents.com/floodwater-mosquitoes/