No Connecticut residents have been identified with illnesses related to WNV infections this year. “We want to encourage residents to reduce their risk of mosquito borne illness by taking the appropriate precautions,” said Sands Cleary, Director of Health, Town of Fairfield. If you must be outdoors at dawn and at dusk when mosquitoes are most active, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants. Use insect repellant but be sure to carefully follow the manufacturer’s directions. It is also recommended that you eliminate standing water from your property by emptying water that collects in unused birdbaths, boats, buckets, tires, unused pools, roof gutters and other containers. For more information on reducing your risk of getting bitten, please visit the Town of Fairfield Health Department website athttp://www.fairfieldct.org/filestorage/10726/11024/14117/16495/14122/Mosquito_Fact_Sheet.pdf. Monitoring and risk assessment for WNV emphasizes mosquito trapping and testing. The CAES maintains a network of 91 mosquito-trapping stations in 72 municipalities throughout the state. Traps are set and attended by CAES staff every 10 days at each site on a regular rotation from June through October. Mosquitoes are grouped (pooled) for testing according to species, collection site and date. Each pool is tested for the presence of viruses of public health importance. Positive findings are reported to local health departments, in press releases, and on the CAES web site at www.ct.gov/caes. For information on West Nile Virus and what you can do to prevent getting bitten by mosquitoes, visit the Connecticut Mosquito Management Program website at www.ct.gov/mosquito. You may download and print a two page brochure on West-Nile Virus from the CAES Web-site www.ct.gov/caes. For more information or questions, please contact Sands Cleary, Director of Health at 203-256-3020 orscleary@fairfieldct.org.