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Michigan to spray for mosquitoes in various counties

"asian tiger mosquito closer" by naturegirl 78 is licensed with CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

The state will conduct aerial spraying for mosquitoes in ten Michigan counties after an outbreak of the Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus that’s killed 22 horses since July.

Most of the cases were in west and mid-Michigan. According to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, this is double the cases in horses than in 20-19.

Sarah Lyon Callo is an epidemiologist for the MDHHS. She says aerial spraying will be conducted after 8pm.

"Treatment will commence Wednesday, weather permitting, and last 3 to 5 days," said Lyon Callo. "The length of time will be weather dependent, and the treatment plan may also change if we find additional cases."

She says there have been no reported cases in humans yet this year. But last year six Michiganders died of the virus.