Orange County Mosquito Control Tackles Dengue Fever and Oropouche Virus

Orange County, FL – While Orange County Mosquito Control, a division of the Orange County Government, continues to combat mosquitoes who may be carriers of Dengue Fever, two travel related cases of Oropouche Virus have now been detected in Orange County.

Mosquito Control has daytime and nighttime crews spraying neighborhoods and educating residents about mosquito prevention after the Florida Department of Health in Orange County (FDOH) notified the division of the two cases of Dengue in the Lockhart-Rosemont area.

“The emergence of Oropouche Virus, even though the cases are travel-related, is a cause for concern,” Steve Harrison, Manager for Orange County Mosquito Control said. “It highlights the interconnectedness of global health and the potential for mosquito-borne diseases to spread in other parts of the world. We have intensified our efforts to control mosquito populations and prevent the establishment of Oropouche Virus, as we did to mitigate the spread of Dengue Fever. Our goal is to safeguard the health of Orange County residents and visitors.”

Oropouche Virus is a mosquito-borne illness first identified in 1955 in Trinidad and Tobago:

• It is currently endemic in the Amazon basin but has recently seen an outbreak in countries outside the region, including Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba and Peru.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health advisory on August 16, 2024, regarding travel-related cases of Oropouche Virus in the Americas, reporting over 8,000 cases since January 1, 2024 with two resulting in death.

Residents of Orange County dealing with a mosquito issue at their home or within their community can seek help from Mosquito Control by calling Orange County’s 311 hotline to report the problem.