Megan Padilla
On a recent trip to the Florida Keys, I was somewhat alarmed to see posters throughout Miami Airport reminding visitors to be vigilant about protecting themselves from mosquito bites to help prevent any locally transmitted cases of the Zika virus.
"Zika?" my husband and I both wondered aloud. "Isn't that under control?"
Yes it is, according to the officials I spoke with earlier this month.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has removed its travel warning to Miami-Dade County, which had advised pregnant women not to travel to the area. The threat of the Zika virus is considered most dangerous to pregnant women due to its suspected link to the brain-related birth defect microcephaly.
Though there are no longer any travel-related or locally transmitted cases, the CDC still advises that residents and visitors remain vigilant in protecting themselves from being bitten by mosquitoes.
According to Rolando Aedo, vice president and chief marketing officer of the Greater Miami CVB, "We are in constant contact with mosquito control, and the measures that were put in place last year have become institutional and year-round."
Nevertheless, the hot, wet weather has returned to the region, creating ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes. If clients ask if they should be concerned about travel to South Florida this summer and fall, the answer is an emphatic, "Absolutely not!" from Aedo as well as from Andy Newman, the media relations director for the Florida Keys Tourism Development Council.
Bob Eadie, the administrator for Florida Health in Monroe County (Florida Keys), agreed. "My grandkids come here all the time. If there were a problem, they wouldn't be here," he said.
According to Eadie, there has never been an active transmission case in the Keys, meaning a case where the Zika virus was contracted after a bite from an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito. The cases that have been reported there were travel-related, meaning the person returned to the U.S. after contracting the virus while out of the country.
The Aedes aegypti mosquito is a freshwater species common to tropical and subtropical regions of the world that can carry illnesses, including the Zika virus. The keyword here is "freshwater."
"If you're out kayaking in the mangroves, and you get bitten, you don't have to worry about it. It may be uncomfortable, but it's not going to harm you," Newman said.
The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District has an aggressive mosquito suppression and abatement program with an $11 million budget and 65 full-time employees. This means they are actively spraying an aerial larvicide that targets the mosquito larvae and prevents them from reaching adulthood.
"There is no real reason for anyone not to be coming to Florida," said Eadie.
Said Aedo, "Because of the urgency of last year, a lot of great things were learned: what to do, what not to do. Miami-Dade County and its partnership with federal and state agencies made us a model of mosquito abatement."
However, the CDC still advises that visitors take steps to prevent being bitten by mosquitoes, and women who are pregnant or wish to become pregnant should make an educated decision about traveling to the area. See the CDC's advice for people living in or traveling to South Florida, which includes a link for pregnancy-planning advice.
The most important thing people can do to prevent mosquito bites is to wear a mosquito repellent that contains DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus as an active ingredient. Wearing long sleeves and pants, when comfortable to do so, provides additional protection.
"The Keys Tourism Council and the tourism industry are very concerned about safety and comfort, and we have been very proactive and transparent with all the challenging issues, including the Zika virus," said Newman.
"If Zika becomes top of mind again, we will immediately add a message to our homepage at fla-keys.com that will be labeled with something like `mosquito protection information.'"
Learn more at http://www.fla-keys.com/mosquito-protection/.
Aedo emphasized that his group will also immediately communicate any Zika updates to their travel trade partners. "We are well equipped to communicate with that community," he said.