The Zika virus has jumped from mainland Miami-Dade County to Miami Beach, according to a news report from Miami.
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Roughly a handful of cases have cropped up that are believed to be linked to that part of the city, a health official who spoke on condition of anonymity told STAT.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention referred calls by Reuters to state health officials.
The Florida Department of Health (Florida Health) said there are now 35 cases of locally transmitted Zika virus in Florida, 10 of them from outside the less than 1-square-mile area that has been identified north of downtown.
All of the cases have been deemed “travel related”, meaning the patients were infected while traveling outside of Montgomery County, officials said.
The SCCHS said most people infected with the Zika virus do not become ill. Twenty-five of them have been tied to the Wynwood neighborhood. Puerto Rico continues to see Zika numbers climb, with 1,448 new cases diagnosed. The city saw a record 15.5 million visitors in 2015, according to the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau.
It could also have an impact outside Miami. The number of cases in Miami Beach has not been confirmed. “Today, to ensure the county has every possible tool to fight Zika, DOH will be sending in additional commercial pest control companies to assist with local mosquito control efforts in Miami-Dade County”. Although the virus generally causes only a mild illness – and often no symptoms at all – it can cause serious birth defects in fetuses when it infects pregnant women.
The New York Times also reported “a cluster” of Zika cases most likely transmitted by local mosquitoes in Miami Beach, citing an unnamed health official.
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“We are anxious about a local mosquito biting that person, picking up the virus and then giving it to someone else the next time they feed”, Smith said.
