The Iberia Mosquito Abatement District will begin aerial spraying operations in the parish on Wednesday.
Following the heavy rainfall from Hurricane Barry, there is still standing water in low-lying areas of the parish. Executive Director of the Iberia Parish Mosquito Control Herff Jones says that because of this water, the population rises quickly and crews have a hard time patrolling those flooded areas.
"With the flooding we expect that floodwater inundation to be in areas that our ground trucks normally don't get to and therefore a little exacerbates the numbers or elevates the number quite a bit within a 4-10 day period post the storm event," Jones said.
With the weather returning to its normal summer pattern, the mosquitoes are more active.
"We see higher activity in our mosquitoes which gives us pause because that identifies risk to our human's that our population that we are trying to protect," Jones said.
Operations begin Wednesday, July 17 in the areas of Delcambre and Rip Van Winkle and on Thursday, July 18 in Laurent and the Port of Iberia. The district says that if operations should be canceled due to weather, they will be moved to the following week.
Aerial spraying will begin near sunset and last for approximately and hour and a half.
During operations, only hypersensitive individuals or persons that wish to avoid all exposure to chemicals should refrain from outdoor activities. All other citizens can proceed with normal outdoor activities
Citizens will notice low flying aircraft in the area as spraying operations are conducted. If the aircraft is overhead, it is advised that citizens not attempt to follow the path of the aircraft.
The operations will take place as follows:
Wednesday (7/17) Delcambre & Rip Van Winkle: operations will focus in Delcambre, specifically, south of Lake Peigneur, R. Esponge, Bob Acres, Longside Rd., Andras, BJ Estelle Dr., Avery Island Rd., Segura Rd. and all points in between.
Thursday (7/18): operations will focus in Laurent and the Port of Iberia, Rynella, Weeks Island Rd., John Lewis Rd., the Port of Iberia, Darnall Rd., R. Ronsonet Rd. and all points in between.
Anyone with questions or mosquito related problems should contact the District office at (337) 365-4933 or visit the website: www.iberiaparishgovernment.com
