The Imperial County Public Health Department announced that two local mosquito pools have tested positive for St. Louis Encephalitis ( SLE ) and West Nile Virus ( WNV ).

 The mosquito pools were collected on Canon Road and La Paz in Imperial on August 9 2022. "These two positive mosquito pools shows that our mosquito surveillance and testing program is working." said County Health Officer Dr. Stephen Munday. SLE and WNV are transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitos become infected when they feed on infected birds. There are no vaccines to prevent nor medications to treat St. Louis Encephalitis or West Nile Virus. You can reduce the risk of mosquito-borne diseases by being taking precautions when outdoors.