Letter to the Editor:
October 25, 2014
Today, more than ever, independent mosquito control districts must remain independent so they can respond to the rapidly spreading Chikungunya virus. While most people in regular government have not heard of this virus, it was first diagnosed in the America’s on December 6, 2013, in Saint Martin. According to the CDC, as of October 21, 2014, Florida has had 265 imported cases and 11 locally transmitted. We know that everyone who is ill with this virus will not see a physician as they have no insurance to cover the office visit, and frankly there is nothing that can be done with this virus, its the same with Dengue. The ChikV outbreak is said to be the most serious vector borne disease to come to the US in decades.
As of October 3, over 750,000 cases have been diagnosed in the Caribbean and beyond with over 1 million ill people coming in to emergency rooms and medical facilities.
To be able to respond WHEN this reaches your county is critical to both the health and well-being of your citizens, but to your tourism as well. ChikV spreading throughout Saint Augustine will effectively kill tourism for a couple years. It is shortsighted to think that a county government can take over mosquito control and do an adequate job with no outbreak of a vector borne virus much less to take over a program when this disease is here and spreading around our state.
While Dengue is a debilitating disease, ChikV is a crippling disease that can linger with a person for up to a year.
Read this article.
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2014/0/chikungunya_virus_mosquito_america.php
The CDC is a little less colorful with personal stories, but the message is the same – ChikV is here to stay and without a strong integrated mosquito control program, it will spread through your county like the fires a few years ago.
http://www.cdc.gov/chikungunya/index.html
I hope you can share this serious message with your colleagues and the elected officials who think it would be a great thing to take over mosquito control. It is sobering and a chilling message of what is to come.
I have a good friend on her vacation now. Yesterday she called me to chat and told me how bad the mosquitoes were and they were eating her feet and legs. In her next breath, she mentioned meeting 3 people who had that chicken virus (ChikV). This woman was one of our first dengue cases 8 years ago and she has chosen to vacation in the epicenter of a 4 dengue types and an outbreak of ChikV. Unfortunately I feel certain she will return Tuesday and become ill before next weeks end. She will be our first ChikV case and I hope she doesn’t get Dengue 2,3 or 4 as it probably will kill her.
Stephen Murray-Smith
*Florida Keys & Key West”
*”Chairman, Board of Commissioners, Florida Keys Mosquito Control District”
*”Chairman, Commissioners Caucus, Florida Mosquito Control Association”
