Bedford City Council, with a motivation of urgency to “protect residents,” voted unanimously (7-0) Thursday to authorize City Manager Andrea Roy to begin “truck-mounted adulticide (an insecticide used to kill adult insects) spraying within the City’s rights-of-way to control the mosquito population.”  The spraying is expected to be conducted as early as Friday and through the weekend.

The Council, meeting in special session with this as the only agenda item, approved the action after three Bedford residents were reported to have been positively diagnosed with West Nile Virus by Tarrant County Public Health, as announced by the City.  In addition, areas in Bedford around Simpson Terrace, Circle Lane, Brookside Drive and Brasher Lane have tested positive for West Nile Virus in the past several weeks.

The City said it already applies monthly larviciding treatments in all the waterways and within a quarter-mile radius of the positive trap in the creeks and flumes to help control the mosquito population.  Larvicides are generally applied to kill immature mosquitos in areas of stagnant water, which is typically where they collect and breed.

According to the website of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most people (4 out of 5) “do not develop any symptoms.”  In some cases, where symptoms do develop, the website stated, people may experience headaches, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea or a rash. Most who contract febrile (feverish) illness, the CDC website said, “recover completely, but fatigue and weakness can last for weeks or months.”

Fewer than one percent of people who test positive, according to the CDC, “develop a severe illness affecting the central nervous system, such as encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) or meningitis (inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord).”

There is no treatment for West Nile Virus, the CDC website stated, but rest, drinking fluids and pain medications may relieve the symptoms.  The CDC also recommended consulting with a health care provider if you think you a family member have been infected.

To protect yourself and your family, the City recommends remaining indoors during dusk and dawn, when mosquitos are most active. If you have to go out during those times, the City further recommends wearing long sleeves and long pants and, for additional protection, you may want to consider spraying thin clothing with repellent.  DEET, the City stated, “is an effective EPA-registered active ingredient to look for in your insect repellent.”  It also recommends applying repellent that contains “up to 20% DEET.”