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- New Yorkers braced for another summer of fear yesterday
after scientists found preliminary evidence that mosquitoes in Westchester
and Suffolk counties are carrying the potentially lethal West Nile virus.
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- And for the first time this year, a bird infected with
the virus was found inside the city limits " triggering ground spraying
of pesticides on Staten Island tomorrow night.
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- "It will be done in a very, very careful way, but
it's absolutely necessary that we do this," Mayor Giuliani said yesterday
at a news conference on Staten Island.
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- "Don't panic. This does not mean that there's an
outbreak, but it does mean that there's some serious action that we have
to take in order to avoid it spreading any further," the mayor said.
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- Two dead crows found on Staten Island tested positive
for the virus. More than two dozen infected birds have been found in Rockland,
Westchester and Suffolk counties, as well as nearby Bergen County, N.J.
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- Suffolk County officials scheduled pesticide spraying
for tonight in Lindenhurst and West Babylon, L.I., and Point O' Woods on
Fire Island.
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- Federal officials said they believe it is only a matter
of time before the virus - which is spread from infected birds to people
by mosquitoes - reaches a human victim this year.
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- With a rising number of birds and mosquitoes found carrying
the virus, an infected person "would be the next step we would expect
to see," said Barbara Reynolds, a spokeswoman for the federal Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
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- West Nile appeared for the first time in the United States
last year, leaving a deadly legacy in the New York area. Though most people
bitten by infected mosquitoes do not develop noticeable symptoms, the virus
can lead to West Nile encephalitis, a potentially fatal inflammation of
the brain.
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- The West Nile virus was blamed for 62 cases of encephalitis
last year, and seven fatalities.
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- Health Commissioner Neal Cohen said the city will spray
Anvil, a pyrethroid-based pesticide with the active ingredient Sumithrin.
For the time being, Anvil will be sprayed from trucks, not helicopters.
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- He said the city will continue its aggressive monitoring
and prevention around the city, which includes cleaning up mosquito breeding
sites.
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- "We believe at this point that we can possibly keep
the virus from gaining traction, from getting a foothold," Cohen said.
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- He said that about 2% of 500-plus dead crows sent to
the state laboratory for testing have shown evidence of the virus.
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- The mosquitoes that showed evidence of the virus in Westchester
included a previously unknown carrier, Aedes japonicus, an Asian mosquito
believed to have found its way to the United States in tire shipments.
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- Unlike the mosquito most associated with West Nile "
the night-feeding Culex pipiens " the Asian mosquito bites around
the clock. Its role in transmitting the virus is unknown at this time,
officials said.
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- Original Publication Date: 7-18-00
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