Following the heavy rains associated with Hurricane Alex, the Coastal Bend has been bombarded with mosquitoes and the City of Kingsville-Kleberg County Health Department has already begun working on the problem.

The health department uses what is known as a ULV (ultra low volume) machine, to spray a chemical mist in the air, which is used to kill adult mosquitoes only and should not be expected to control or kill mosquito larva.

“We started spraying for mosquitoes Tuesday evening and will do so twice a day until the problem is gone,” Yolanda Cadena, city-county health department director, said.

“We have crews that go out from 8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. and again from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m.”

The spraying is performed during the evening and early morning hours because this is the time when the majority of the mosquitoes are feeding.

Cadena said her office has been flooded with calls from citizens about the problem, and she is letting everyone know that crews will continue spraying as long as the weather permits.

“We cannot spray if it starts raining or if it gets too windy, so hopefully the weather will be on our side,” Cadena said.

The City of Kingsville experienced high winds and showers along with several tornado sightings reported during the late evening hours of Wednesday, June 30, stretching into the early morning hours on Thursday, July 1.

Cadena is asking that residents drain any standing water around their homes as well as empty cans, buckets, rain gutters, tires and flower pots.

She also said residents should change the water in outdoor pet bowls, wading pools and birdbaths several times a week.

City officials also kept busy during Alex’s approach to the Gulf shoreline.

Mayor Sam R. Fugate activated the Emergency Operations Center for the city on Monday, June 28, to respond to the possible threat posed by Tropical Storm Alex.

City Emergency Management Coordinator John Garcia hosted meetings on a daily basis at 10:30 a.m. and then again at 4:30 p.m. to listen in on the State Operations Center situational reports.

Citizens can access the situational reports via the Texas Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management website.

Several local community partners including, Kingsville Independent School District, Walmart, Christus Spohn Hospital Kleberg, Texas A&M University Kingsville, Kleberg County Appraisal District, and a representative

(See Mosquitoes, Page 6A) from local ministries attended the meetings to prepare for Alex.

The national weather service issued a tornado warning for the area and the outdoor sirens were activated to warn citizens of the possibility of tornados forming in and around our city.

The sirens are activated for a three minute interval to alert citizens that conditions are present that could lead to the formation of a tornado in or in close proximity to Kingsville. Should citizens want more information, register at Nixle via the City of Kingsville Website at www.cityofkingsville.com.

The link on the webpage will provide instructions on how to register to receive information from the City of Kingsville Police Department about advisories and alerts.

City officials are still assessing the total impact of Alex.

The mayor said he wants to assure residents that the City of Kingsville has a good plan to respond to a hurricane event should the situation arise.

“Our citizens should stay alert for storm-related incidents during the next few months since hurricane season has just begun,” Mayor Fugate said.