The centre of Orihuela is facing the worst plague of mosquitoes it has experienced in recent years. The Council of Environment has ordered the company responsible for controlling the insects to extend their fumigation from the shores of the river to the gardens of Ociopía, Los Arcos, the Juan García park, the Plaza Nueva and other others green areas in the city.
Councillor, Ginés Sánchez explains that the plague of mosquitoes this year has continued right from from Easter. The presence of the river Segura, the wet winter and spring followed by the recent warm weather have all worked in favour of the cycle of the mosquito.
The council already spends 50,000€ per year controlling these insects which are now moving to the parks during the day time for shelter which means extending the fumigation to these areas.
A contributing factor to the problem is the flow of water in the Segura. There should be four metres of water per second through the river; at the moment there is half that amount. Mosquitoes proliferate in still or slow moving water.
We have encountered the problem of the orialanos first hand. Pam has a bite on her toe which she says is really painful. At first she wondered what it was, now we know it is a bite from when we were in Orihuela and she was wearing sandals.
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