KJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College,
and Maricopa Community Colleges

Copyright © 2025 KJZZ/Rio Salado College/MCCCD
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Monsoons Bring Mosquitoes, And Mosquitoes Bring Disease

Phoenix isn’t the first place that comes to mind when you think “mosquito infestation.” But those little buggers come out in full force during the monsoon season.

Some Valley neighborhoods could face the threat of West Nile virus following Tuesday’s monsoon.

Johnny Diloné of the Maricopa County Environmental Services Department said stagnant rain water is the ideal breeding ground for West Nile-carrying mosquitoes.

"The last couple of weeks that number of mosquito traps that have tested positive for of West Nile have increased. So as of this week, we have a number of 89 positive mosquito traps. We’ve been seeing an increase in that number," he said.

Diloné urges homeowners to remove standing water from their surrounding property to reduce the number of mosquitoes hatching.

And there are precautions people should take to protect themselves. 

"Especially if it’s at dawn or dusk, and we’re out there running or conducting different activities to try to cover ourselves as much as possible with long sleeves, long pants," Diloné said. "Use light-colored clothing that tends to repeal mosquitoes the most, and also wear insect repellent."

Diloné sakd the CDC recommends using repellents with DEET. Just be sure to follow instructions, especially if you’re applying bug spray to kids.

KJZZ senior field correspondent Kathy Ritchie has 20 years of experience reporting and writing stories for national and local media outlets — nearly a decade of it has been spent in public media.