harbor park 5/26/13

[I*B*CATCHIN]

The day started with locked gates .....so I wasn't going to let that mess my day up & decided to hop the curb in my (F150 ) because I knew it would be a while before a worker would come to open the gates & I wasn't wrong ....anyway I started with hair rig w/ fake corn & c-rig w / real sweet corn ..i also seen on YouTube a guy catching catching them on hotdogs & luncheon meat so i used my half bag of dogs to see if i do the same ......did get some slight pulls but nothing committed to a hook up .....did get a vist from a fellow member of ( fishingnetwork.net dockrat ) & then came mimik & his friend sergio they decided to fish ( big serg spot ) unfortunately I fot the stripe , just before I left eddie caught 2 carp & his friend sergio caught 1 his first ...wtg sergio....he's no longer a virgin .....welll if things weather wise is good I'll be back in the morning for redemption .....todays walk of shame can't have a twin tomorrow

[DockRat]

Nice meeting you Raffa. That spot looks fishey. Did thy catch anything big ?
DFG DR

That was funny when I asked for your license. Lol

[DockRat]

Today's Daily Breeze reports West Nile Virus at Harbor Lake
-brian

Thanks Bman

Mosquitoes in Harbor Area found to be carriers of West Nile virus
By Donna Littlejohn, Staff Writer
@donnalittlejohn on Twitter
Posted: 05/25/2013 04:00:00 PM PDT

Mosquitoes bearing West Nile Virus have been found in early-season samplings done at Machado Lake in Harbor Regional Park (on the border of Wilmington/Harbor City) and the Wilmington Drain (Harbor City) that connects to the lake north of PCH. Signs have been posted warning visitors of the danger. No other infected samples have been found in the county as of now. (Brittany Murray / Staff Photographer)

That buzzing sound at night can harken just one thing - mosquito season has arrived.

And that can mean more than just an annoying itch.

Early testing this year has turned up the first confirmed samples of mosquitoes bearing the West Nile virus in Wilmington and Harbor City, according to vector control officials who late last week released information for the 2013 season.

The samples were taken from the Machado Lake area in Harbor Regional Park in Wilmington and the Wilmington Drain, which runs between Lomita Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway and connects to the lake.

So far, the virus has not shown up in any other parts of Los Angeles County.

The mosquito-borne West Nile virus was first detected in the United States in 1999, starting in New York City and then moving west.

Still early in the mosquito season that runs through October, the initial 2013 samples collected locally have prompted officials to begin strategizing what can be done to address the Harbor Area's largest known mosquito habitats.

"There are so many variables" in determining how mild or severe a West Nile season might be, said Mark Hall, operations supervisor for the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District. "We're still learning so much about it and every year seems to be different. We compile the data from year to year, so we're still in a learning phase. "
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Hall, who was surveying Machado Lake on Friday, said a plan would be put together on how to proceed.

"It's always a source for mosquito activity," he said of the lake that lies within a 231-acre city park next to Los Angeles Harbor College. "We're constantly in a battle to control" the insects.

Jimmy Tokeshi, public information officer for the Los Angeles city Department of Public Works, said the agency is "going to do what we can to assist securing the public health and safety. "

One ray of hope is the planned implementation of Proposition O, a $117 million renovation project approved by voters in 2004. The work calls for removing invasive vegetation, dredging the lake and establishing more water flow.

But while the lake and drain are known potential sources of mosquitoes - and are treated regularly, Hall said - often the worst sources are not so obvious.

"Oftentimes, it's the small containers (of rain water) in a backyard, or the bucket behind the shed," he said.

Mosquitoes prefer to feed on the area's wild birds, in which the virus then lives, Hall said.

"We're assessing the whole situation and are trying to put together a treatment strategy; we're collecting all the data we can," Hall said. "We'll be putting a plan together on Tuesday. "

One in five people infected with the virus will exhibit symptoms - fever, headache, nausea or skin rash - and one in 150 infected will require hospitalization.

And while death is rare, it does occur; six people died of the virus in Los Angeles County in 2012 when there were 174 cases reported countywide, according to a report by the Acute Communicable Disease Control of Los Angeles County, Department of Public Health.

The very young and very old appear to be most at risk, Hall said.

West Nile has cropped up in the Harbor Area in previous years. A Wilmington teenager was one of only 43 cases reported in the county in 2005. She also was among those who suffered serious neurological damage from the illness.

The virus also has been found in samples taken from Fresno and Tulare counties this spring.

Signs will be posted in and around Harbor Regional Park to inform people that the virus has been found in the area, Hall said.

Residents are encouraged to wear long sleeves and long pants and use insect repellent, Hall said. Mosquitoes are most active at dawn and dusk.

Residents also are encouraged to eliminate all standing water around their properties, make sure swimming pools and spas are properly maintained and report mosquito activity near vacant or foreclosed homes.