OSWEGO COUNTY - Aerial spraying of portions of the towns of Hastings, West Monroe and Constantia was completed tonight, Aug. 24.

Oswego County contracted with Duflo Spray-Chemical Inc. from Lowville to conduct aerial spraying of the Toad Harbor Swamp area near the north shore of Oneida Lake to reduce the population of mosquitoes that carry the Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus. 

A copy of the pesticide label and safety data sheet (SDS) including warnings and fact sheets about permethrin aerial spraying can be found on the Oswego County website at https://health.oswegocounty.com/programs/environmental1/eee.php, or obtained by calling the Oswego County Health Department at 315-349-3564 weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.  After 4 p.m., call 315-341-0086.

Oswego County Public Health Director Jiancheng Huang said people in Oswego County should continue to limit their outdoor activities around dawn and dusk, when mosquitoes are most active; wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts, shoes and socks when outdoors, eliminate standing water around the home and use insect repellents. Those containing DEET, picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus are all effective but must be used according to label instructions.

Oswego County residents who would like to receive community alerts by wireless phones, text messages and TTY may register for the Hyper-Reach Broadcast Notification Service through Oswego County’s E-9-1-1 Emergency Communications Department at oswegocounty.com/911 or they may contact the E-9-1-1 administrative office at 315-349-8215 or 1-800-679-3911 and request a registration form. Landline phone customers don’t need to register because their numbers are provided to the E-9-1-1 department by the telephone companies that serve Oswego County.

For more information about protecting your family against mosquitoes, call the Oswego County Health Department at 315-349-3547 or visit the New York State Department of Health website at https://www.health.ny.gov/publications/2731/.