Truck-Mounted Mosquito Spraying Coming To Sudbury

SUDBURY, MA — A truck will travel through several Sudbury neighborhoods on Monday and Wednesday to spray mosquito pesticides. The spraying comes as the state has discovered the first mosquitoes infected with Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) in Massachusetts.

The spraying in Sudbury will begin around dusk and last until just before midnight, and is weather-dependent. Thunderstorms are in the forecast on Monday afternoon.

The truck will apply a product called Anvil, which contains a pesticide called sumithrin that kills adult mosquitoes. Experts say the pesticide poses minimal risk to humans and pets, but Sudbury is advising that residents avoid the spray truck.

On July 3, the state Department of Public Health announced that mosquitoes in the Orange and Athol areas had tested positive for EEE. The deadly virus emerged at the end of summer 2019, an infected 12 people — and three died. EEE outbreaks typically linger for two or more summers, according to health officials.

"It is early in the year for the first evidence of EEE, therefore, continued mosquito surveillance over the next several weeks will help us understand more about how quickly the virus might emerge this year," Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said in a July 3 news release.

Here's where the truck spraying in Sudbury will occur:

• On Monday in the vicinity of Powder Hill Road, Powers Road, Dakin Road, North Road, Ford Road, Mossman Road, Haynes Road, Pantry Road, Morse Road and Thompson Drive.
• On Wednesday in the vicinity of Belcher Drive, Hampshire St., Grindstone Lane, Atkinson Lane, Intervale Road, Howell Road and Barton Drive.