By Doug McMurdo | The Moab Times Independent | Photo Courtesy of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

Steve Sheaffer, the Moab Mosquito Abatement district manager, said in a statement released, Wednesday, Sept. 10, that West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitoes collected from the Matheson Wetlands Preserve in Moab.

“West Nile can be transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito,” wrote Sheaffer. “The mosquitoes that carry this virus are common throughout Utah and can be found in urban as well as more rural areas.”

Sheaffer wrote that while West Nile virus can infect anyone, people over the age of 50 or those who have underlying health conditions are more at risk.

He encourages residents to “take a few basic precautions to help to protect yourself, your loved ones, and the entire Moab community from disease risk and annoyance mosquitoes can cause.”

Read more at MoabTimes.com.

This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.