{"id":847334,"date":"2026-08-05T19:44:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T19:44:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/847334\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T19:44:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T19:44:13","slug":"portage-mosquito-numbers-down-after-fogging-city-continues-monitoring-portageonline-com","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/847334\/","title":{"rendered":"Portage mosquito numbers down after fogging, city continues monitoring – PortageOnline.com"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mosquito numbers in Portage la Prairie<\/a> have declined following a recent fogging operation<\/a>, but the city says populations remain at a medium level and will continue to be monitored.<\/p>\n

Superintendent of Public Works Paul Ziesmann says mosquito fogging carried out a few weeks ago resulted in a significant drop in trap counts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the fogging, we saw a reduction to about 50% of our mosquito trapping numbers,\u201d Ziesmann said.<\/p>\n

The city has continued checking mosquito traps daily, including over the long weekend. Recent results show counts are still hovering around the medium range.<\/p>\n

City watching threshold levels<\/p>\n

Portage la Prairie uses four mosquito traps located throughout the city to monitor populations. Ziesmann says thresholds are based on historical mosquito numbers and help determine when additional control measures may be needed.<\/p>\n

Ziesmann added that current trap counts are about halfway to the level that would trigger further action.<\/p>\n

Related stories:<\/p>\n

He says areas including Island Park were included in the previous fogging operation.<\/p>\n

The city has not announced another round of fogging at this time but will continue monitoring conditions.<\/p>\n

Province orders mosquito spraying amid West Nile risk<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s monitoring comes as Manitoba Health, Seniors and Long-Term Care has issued its first West Nile Virus Bulletin of the season.<\/p>\n

The province has issued a ministerial order under the Environment Act allowing adult mosquito spraying with DeltaGard 20EW in communities where surveillance found high numbers of Culex tarsalis mosquitoes and evidence of West Nile virus infection.<\/p>\n

The order currently applies to communities including Carman, Stonewall, the RM of West St. Paul, Winkler and portions of Winnipeg.<\/p>\n

Portage la Prairie is not included in the current list of communities receiving spraying under the provincial order.<\/p>\n

Highest-risk period underway<\/p>\n

The province says hot temperatures across southern Manitoba have shortened the time needed for West Nile virus to develop inside infected mosquitoes and spread to humans.<\/p>\n

Manitoba is currently in the highest-risk period for human exposure, which historically runs from July 15 to Aug. 15.<\/p>\n

As of the latest provincial update, there have been no confirmed human cases of West Nile virus in Manitoba in 2026.<\/p>\n

Health officials say a single bite from an infected mosquito can transmit the virus. In severe cases, West Nile virus can cause encephalitis, long-term complications and death.<\/p>\n

Residents are encouraged to reduce their risk by using insect repellent, wearing protective clothing and removing standing water around their homes.<\/p>\n

What can the public do?<\/p>\n

Residents can reduce standing water that may collect in their backyard, including old tires, wading pools, stagnant ponds, bird baths, pet bowls or in flower pots.<\/p>\n

Residents can protect themselves through the following activities:<\/p>\n


\n\tUsing an appropriate mosquito repellent as per label directions.
\n\tMowing long grass will reduce resting sites for the adult mosquitoes.
\n\tReducing the amount of time spent outdoors between dusk and dawn.
\n\tWearing loose fitting clothing, light coloured, long sleeve tops and long pants when outdoors.
\n\tMaking sure that door and window screens fit tightly and are free of holes. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mosquito numbers in Portage la Prairie have declined following a recent fogging operation, but the city says populations…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":847335,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,84],"class_list":["post-847334","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847334","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=847334"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/847334\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/847335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=847334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=847334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=847334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}