Press Release From Coachella Valley MVCD
July 25, 2018
Mosquito-borne virus activity intensifies in the East Valley, truck-mounted control planned in Mecca.
INDIO, CA, JULY 25, 2018: The Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District detected West Nile virus (WNV) activity for the first time in Thermal in 2018 and continued activity of St. Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) in Mecca. Mosquitoes trapped in downtown Mecca tested positive for SLEV, the first mosquito-borne virus activity detected in an East Valley residential community this year.
In Mecca, mosquitoes collected from a trap near Lincoln Street and 65th Avenue and from a trap near Colfax Street and 72nd Avenue tested positive for SLEV. The mosquitoes that tested positive for WNV came from a trap in Thermal near Pierce Street and Avenue 70.
This brings the number of WNV-positive mosquito samples to 11 and the number of SLEVpositive mosquito samples to 11 for 2018. Last year at this time the District had detected 69 WNV-positive mosquito samples and no SLEV-positive mosquito samples. All mosquitoes were tested at the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District laboratory.