LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – With the Labor Day weekend coming up, the Lake County Vector Control District and Lake County Public Health Department are encouraging community members and visitors to use precautions to guard against West Nile virus.

So far this year, 11 mosquito samples and one chicken tested positive for West Nile virus in Lake County.

The chicken is from a sentinel flock in Upper Lake, and the mosquitoes were collected in Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Lower Lake and Middletown, Vector Control reported.

“Holidays and warm weather are great reasons to be outdoors,” said Lake County Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait. “When outdoors, protection against mosquito bites is important to staying healthy and the best way to avoid West Nile Virus infection.”

Officials recommend using repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus to avoid mosquito bites.

“West Nile virus activity is at its peak now. This hot weather creates ideal conditions for mosquitoes and the virus,” said Jamesina Scott, Ph.D., district manager and research director for the Lake County Vector Control District. “The mosquitoes that carry West Nile virus come from backyard water sources like wading pools, ponds, buckets, swimming pools and spas that aren’t being maintained, and any other place where water sits for more than three days.”

Residents are urged to help reduce their risk of contracting mosquito-borne diseases by following these guidelines:

- Dump or drain standing water. Mosquitoes can't begin their lives without water.
- Defend yourself. Use repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus.
- Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are present, typically dawn and dusk.
- Maintain swimming pools and spas. Just one unmaintained swimming pool can produce more than one million mosquitoes and affect people up to five miles away.
- Report dead birds to the state hotline: 1-877-968-2473 or by visiting the California Department of Public Health's Web site. All reports are crucial to our West Nile virus surveillance program.

Since 2004, nine Lake County residents have been diagnosed with West Nile virus.

For a current list of West Nile virus activity in Lake County this year, visit the district's Web site and for statewide information, visit the California Department of Public Health’s West Nile Virus Web site.

The Lake County Vector Control District, an independent special district and public health agency, serves all of Lake County and is located at 410 Esplanade in Lakeport.

Call the District at (707) 263-4770 or request service online at http://www.LCVCD.org/Services/RequestService/index.html for mosquito problems, or visit the office between 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday to get free mosquitofish for ornamental ponds, livestock water troughs, or neglected swimming pools.