So many things are going on in the news all around the world, but what would be your reaction when you found out that the dangerous zika virus has hit southern California?

A disease carried by aggressive mosquitoes swoops down on southern California less than a month ago and shocks all. L.A. County has reported 29 cases, Orange County has 10 cases, San Bernardino County has seven cases and Riverside county has three cases. Yellow fever mosquitoes have been found in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino County, so the chances of these insects (both containing zika) infecting people rather than aedes mosquitos are more likely.  

The biggest concern is the infected pregnant women who will have babies with complications at birth. Nine of the women who were a part of the reported cases in Los Angeles County were pregnant. When a mother who is infected has a baby, birth defects are forced upon the baby and are life threatening. This defect is known as microcephaly, a shrunken head and brain. Babies are tracked for a year and monitored neurologically, on senses and development.

Due to the risks of traveling, mosquito experts suggest that travelers delay any trips to Central America and Florida because these two locations are the main source of the virus. The amount of mosquitos in California are expected to be multiplying and active especially around this time of year when the sun is out. “These mosquitoes just don’t fly very far. They’re perfectly happy with completing their life cycle,including feeding on humans,  in a single backyard,” says Jared Dever, spokesman for Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control District. For residents of southern California, this will remain an issue until experts have found a solution to containing this virus and the infectors within their facilities.