Mass. mosquito spraying back on

TAUNTON, Mass. (WPRI) - After canceling their plans to begin aerial mosquito spraying in many southeastern Massachusetts, health officials announced they will spray in some communities after all.

Officials on Wednesday canceled plans because of weather, rescheduling the spraying for Thursday afternoon. Thursday's spraying had been canceled, but officials decided to spray in some communities anyway.

The state decided to begin aerial spraying for mosquitoes after more positive tests of Eastern Equine Encephalitis .

• See map of areas to be sprayed

The communities scheduled to be sprayed Thursday night are:

• Bridgewater
• Carver
• East Bridgewater
• Halifax
• Hanson
• Lakeville
• Marion
• Mattapoisett
• Middleborough
• Pembroke
• Plympton
• Rochester
• Wareham
• West Bridgewater

If any of those communities aren't sprayed, officials will resume on Friday.

Also on Friday, officials plan to spray several other communities:

• Acushnet
• Berkley
• Dartmouth
• Duxbury
• Easton
• Fairhaven
• Freetown
• Kingston
• New Bedford
• Norton
• Plymouth
• Raynham
• Taunton

The pesticide spraying will take place between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m.

During these hours, residents should:

• Close their windows
• Turn off window fans
• Shut off air conditioners (unless they re-circulate indoor air)
• Keep pets indoors
• Wash exposed skin or clothes with soap & warm water
• Wash any homegrown fruits & vegetables

Health Officials are warning this year could be very severe for the EEE virus.

• EEE Fact Sheet

Gov. Deval Patrick announced the decision to spray the area earlier this week. He stressed there are ways residents can protect themselves , including:

• Using bug spray
• Covering up when outdoors, especially during peak mosquito hours of dusk to dawn

Massachusetts residents are advised to visit the state's website for more information on EEE. Or call: 1-866-MASS-WNV (1-866-627-7968) or the Epidemiology Program at 617-983-6800.