By karl vilacoba
Staff Writer
BRICK –– A dead crow tested by the Ocean County Health Department became the second found infected with the West Nile virus in Brick this summer, according to township officials.
The case came to light when a resident of Brick’s Beverly Beach section reported a dead bird in the yard to county authorities, according to Brick Public Information Officer Bryan Dickerson. It was the second infected bird found in Brick during the month of July, and one of a few cases reported throughout the county.
Last week, county officials reported a West Nile virus-infected crow in Jackson to add to recent cases in Barnegat and Beachwood.
The case in Brick, reported in mid-July, was found in the area of Windward Beach Park. The Ocean County Mosquito Extermination Commission conducted tests around that area, all of which turned up negative. Nonetheless, township officials sent out letters notifying over 50 residents in the crow’s immediate vicinity.
"(County officials) don’t even recommend notifying anybody. We just thought it was the right thing to do," Business Administrator Scott MacFadden said at last week’s Brick Township Council meeting.
Republican council candidate Tony Matthews was one of a few residents who expressed concerns about standing water gathered in local detention basins during the meeting.
Township officials said they are monitoring the basins and working on clearing them out.
"I would say 90 percent of the calls we’ve received about West Nile virus are about the retention basins," Dickerson said.
MacFadden said the two cases may be transitory birds.
"Birds fly. They could have come from anywhere," MacFadden said.
According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site, there are several steps that may help minimize the chances of becoming infected with West Nile virus, which is spread mainly through mosquito bites.
These precautions include limiting time spent outdoors during the dawn and dusk hours, which are active hours for mosquitoes, wearing long sleeves and pants, and using insect repellent. The CDC also advises residents to change and clear standing water areas around homes where mosquitoes can breed, and to keep screens on windows and doors.
Residents who find a dead crow on their premises can call the Ocean County Health Department at (732) 341-9700.