By Amanda Oglesby, Asbury Park Press
Bret Ulozas sprays his yard for mosquitoes in the New Egypt section of Plumsted in order to keep the blood suckers at bay.
The 49-year-old applies insecticide to reduce the nuisance of mosquitoes, especially as his family spends more time in the backyard due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The virus they found in mosquitoes around that military housing development in New Egypt was Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE), a disease that kills up to a third of people who develop symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The mosquitoes in New Jersey — larvae nursed by wet springs and humid summers — have for years posted a health hazard to residents here.
Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers Brick, Barnegat and Lacey townships as well as the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than a decade. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.