Hillsborough County residents might want to stay indoors or at least slap on some bug spray come tonight. The county's Mosquito Management Services is taking to the skies to dispatch an aerial offensive against the bloodsuckers. A twin-engine plane will be deployed to blanket parts of South Tampa, Gibsonton, and Apollo Beach with Dibrom, an insecticide aimed at cutting down the adult mosquito population.
The insecticide mission is set to take flight beginning 8 p.m. today, and will continue to aggressively cover ground until the early hours of 6:30 a.m. the following morning. The areas targeted, according to an announcement from Hillsborough County's website, will be clearly defined by boundaries in South Tampa, Gibsonton, and Apollo Beach to ensure a comprehensive treatment.
For those into specifics, the boundaries in South Tampa run from West Swann Avenue to MacDill Air Force Base and from Bayshore Boulevard to A.J. Palonis Park. Gibsonton will see treatments from Symmes Road to Big Bend Road and from Interstate 75 to Williams Street. And in Apollo Beach, the zone is patched from Signet Drive to College Avenue and from Tamiami Trail out to the edge of Little Manatee River State Trail. The county notes that the plane will swoop in at 300 feet to optimally disperse .66 ounces of Dibrom per acre over the mosquito-haunted zones.
If the weather decides to not play ball, there's a backup plan. The first alternate spray date is set for tomorrow, with a second option lined up for Sunday, if required. Despite the aerial assault, it never hurts to take personal precautions against mosquitoes, known to be carriers of diseases. The county encourages residents with questions or concerns to pick up the phone and call Hillsborough County Public Works at (813) 635-5400 for more information or to learn how to protect themselves from these pests.
