What you need to know
According to a Sept. 13 city news release, the positives came from mosquito pools located near the following locations:
- McCommas Drive and Michelle Drive intersection, the area’s third positive this season
- Along Gardenia Road, which borders the Fields Ranch West golf course
- Near the Frisco ISD Service Center
- Along Midnight Moon Drive, the area’s second positive this season
- Starwood Drive and Lebanon Road intersection, near Starwood Park
Following Frisco’s Mosquito Surveillance and Response Plan, third-party contractors will spray the areas surrounding the five positives with an adulticide—a mosquito-specific insecticide—overnight Sept. 14-15, according to the release.
Adulticides target the adult mosquitos that could carry West Nile virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The spraying is harmless to pets and people when done correctly.
Keep in mind
Frisco tests mosquito pools for West Nile virus annually during the May 1-Nov. 15 mosquito season. The five pool positives confirmed Sept. 15 bring the city’s total to 13, the total number of positives reported in the entire 2022 season.
The 2022 season was also the last time Frisco had any pool positives, according to Frisco’s mosquito surveillance map. The map is a public database that records all West Nile pool positives and spraying areas since 2018.
There have been no human cases of West Nile virus reported in the city so far, according to the release. There was one potential positive near a Frisco mosquito pool last week, but the pool was sprayed Sept. 7-8 and tested negative as of Sept. 13.
Going forward
The Texas Department of State Health Services recommends residents take precaution against mosquitos with the following steps:
- Wear: Wear long sleeves and pants outside at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active.
- Apply: Use insect repellants if outside. Approved repellents contain DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus.
- Remove: Drain standing water that collects in bird baths, French drains, clogged gutters, saucers under potted plants and splash blocks. The mosquitoes that carry the virus can breed in stagnant water.
More information on how to prevent mosquito bites and breeding can be found at www.friscotexas.gov/222/Mosquitoes or by contacting the city’s Health and Food Safety Division at 972-292-5304.
