Florida’s Department of Health has now reported four cases – three men and one woman – of Zika transmission by mosquitoes within Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
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Now, as the mosquito-transmitted virus steadily made its way into the United States, England issued a Zika travel advisory and have advised pregnant women to delay any nonessential travel to Florida following cases of local transmission of the virus that were discovered in Miami. And a Zika Risk Map created by NASA predicted that such a mosquito-borne transmission of the Zika Virus in the United States would most likely occur in the Miami area during the month of July 2016.
The virus has triggered alarm across the warmer latitudes of the Western Hemisphere. But the biggest concern is the link between Zika infection in pregnant women and brain damage in their babies, one of which is microcephaly – which leaves babies with abnormally small heads and other severe brain defects. They expect Zika’s spread will be more limited than in Brazil, given widespread USA use of screens on windows, air conditioning and mosquito control programs.
“Florida has become the first state in our nation to have local transmission of the Zika virus”, Florida Gov. Rick Scott said Friday.
He later added, “This is not just a Florida issue”.
Florida agricultural officials immediately announced more aggressive mosquito-control efforts, and Florida politicians rushed to assure tourists it’s still safe to visit the state. However, the CDC is not issuing such advice.
Its director, Tom Frieden, said: “All the evidence we have seen indicates that this is mosquito-borne transmission that occurred several weeks ago”. PHE has said the risk in the southern U.S. state was moderate, while in many countries in South America, including Olympics host Brazil, it was high.
In Puerto Rico, over 4,500 cases of the virus, virtually all contracted through mosquitoes, was reported.
Since the Zika epidemic began in 2015, almost 5,000 cases of microcephaly have been recorded in affected regions. “It is mosquitoes! It is going to get worse – we are now in the middle of the summer”.
Other athletes who are travelling to Rio have said they will leave their families at home, including long jumper Greg Rutherford and the runner Jo Pavey. Florida and other states have successfully fought off outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya in recent years.
At a press conference on Friday, White House deputy press secretary called the transmission a “wake-up call”, while stopping short of asking Congress to come back into session.
Jenny Gray, who is 27 and works in Wynwood for an art designer, said she will follow experts’ advice to wear insect repellent.
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Leasing agent Crystal Armand said she’d avoid the area’s boutiques and art galleries for a while. “I’m concerned that this is just the beginning”.
