ROCKY HILL -- Summer night may be numbered, but Eastern Equine Encephalitis is still a big problem. Particularly in the eastern half of the state.
An adult in East Lyme has been hospitalized with the potentially life-threatening virus, only the second human case ever I Connecticut. The first back in 2013.
Due to the threat of EEE, Colchester decided to postpone their fireworks planned for this weekend.
“You know what better safe than sorry and when they were going to have the fireworks it’s the exact time the mosquitoes are out. So we don’t get a big boom, but at least people are safe,” said Allen Archambault, Colchester.
Senator Richard Blumenthal urging other towns and cities who have out door activates this weekend to take similar precautions.
“Town Officials have an obligation, they ought to be canceling events that take place at dusk for example this weekend, the first frost is going to be here shortly. There plenty of time for these later but a lot of folks may not be seeing or hearing the news. The mosquitos are going to be out there, so I would urge caution an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” said Senator Blumenthal.
Researchers are still trying to figure out why we’re seeing an increase in this mosquito borne virus.
“Everyone like to say is this due to climate change, we can’t definitely answer that, but I will say this. The climate change scenario that we’re expected to experience what’s called milder winters. This increases the over wintering survival of these mosquitoes,” said Theodore Andreadis Director, Connecticut agricultural experiment station.
The mosquito population won’t be killed of until the first hard frost.