Standing water leftover from storms raises mosquito concerns

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla.- All of the standing water left over from days of storms in Southwest Florida could lead to another big, pesky problem.

Officials with the Charlotte County Mosquito Control are prepared to fight the buzzing insects if they begin to breed from the large amount of puddles sitting around.

“We’ve had a lot of rain that’s for sure! We have a lot collected in our swell drainage, our ditches,” said Randy Ahrens.

Mosquito control says there are two types of mosquitoes people need to look out for.

Larger mosquitoes could start flying around flooded pastures and farms, “they’re just annoying, more of a nuisance than anything, especially for livestock,” warned biological specialist Beth Kovach.

In residential communities, officials say smaller mosquitoes could be breeding in any still, standing water.

“It’s very important that homeowners take out the time to dump out containers, tires, tire swings, tarps, rain gutters,” Kovach advised.

Mosquito control isn’t currently fumigating any areas, but once they get a call, they fire up their trucks and you could be mosquito free in just a couple of days.

“We go out and do landing rate counts, we set traps, and depending on that data, determines when and where we can spray,” said Kovach.

Officials say this month, Charlotte County has gotten over 9 inches of rain, which is about 8 inches more than average. The cooler temperatures are helping keep the number of mosquitoes down for now.