Orange urges public to take Zika precautions
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Orange County leaders heard an update from it's Health Director and say they have a plan for Zika if an outbreak were to occur locally. Dr. Christopher Hunter says it is not certain the virus will be locally transmitted.
"I think it really is a question of IF, and a lot of depends on how well we are able to control the world really, all over our hemisphere."
Dr. Hunter says it is unlikely the virus will travel by mosquito from the only place in the continental US where local transmissions have occurred, a square mile area in Miami-Dade County.
"If it does happen. It would likely be because someone traveling from an area here, and then one of our local mosquitoes then bit them and passed it on. It is very unlikely that it is going to go from mosquito to mosquito and then up the coast."
The presentation today was to show efforts are already being made to inform residents of what to do, and the Mayor says the County can do more if necessary.
"The good thing about Zika is that there are lots of things that individual citizens can do protect themselves and around their homes and properties, so I feel as confident as I feel that if we have a local transmission we have a game plan."
The most obvious and effective prevention is dumping any standing water around your property. We wanted to know how much tourism could be affected. British women have been advised to postpone travel to Florida if they are pregnant. Mayor Teresa Jacobs says she can't worry about what she cannot control.
"I'm trying to focus on the things we can control which is the reality here on the ground, and to make sure that our citizens and that our visitors when they are here know one, what we are doing to keep them safe, and two, what they can do keep themselves safe."
Commissioners were told aerial spraying is largely ineffective for the type of mosquito that carries Zike, and if local cases do show up, the battle will have to be fought with ground spraying. You can see Orange County's list of Zika precautions here .