PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire County Mosquito Control Project will be spraying the areas around Brattlebrook Park and Marchesio Park on Monday night to reduce a high count of mosquitoes.

 

The truck-mounted spraying will target the streets immediately surrounding those two parks at 11 p.m. until midnight Monday, July 15. In the event of rain, the spraying may be rescheduled to Tuesday, July 16.

 

The goal of the spraying is to reduce the spread of mosquito-borne viruses such as West Nile Virus or Eastern Equine Encephalitis. While there hasn't been a finding of a disease, the Health Department said there has been high counts of C. Perturban mosquitoes, which are a common vector.

 

The number of mosquitoes has exceeded the threshold set by the Board of Health to spray in an effort to prevent migration into other neighborhoods and reducing the population before the virus is introduced to the area.

 

The Health Department provided the following tips to protect against mosquito-borne illnesses:

 

-When outdoors, wear long pants, a long-sleeved shirt and socks.

-Use a repellent with DEET according to the instructions on the product label.

-Keep mosquitoes out of one's residence by repairing holes in screens and making sure screens fit tightly to doors and windows.

-Schedule outdoor events to avoid the hours between dusk and dawn, when mosquitoes are most active.

-Remove areas of standing water around one's property twice a week to eliminate sources of mosquito breeding.

 

Residents may request to be excluded from pesticide application by submitting an Exclusion Request Form which can be obtained here.

 

Exclusions will take effect 14 days after the request is made.  The form is also available by contacting the Mosquito Control Project at 413-447-9808 or email chris@berkshiremosquito.org.