CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — With heavy rain being a possibility this week, residents know to start being on the watch for mosquitoes and other pests.
Corpus Christi Animal Care Services Director Joel Skidmore said that fluctuating weather has helped keep mosquitoes at bay.
"We have had some wet weather, but on the back end of that wet weather, we've had some cold weather, which has been helping us keep any mosquitos that have hatched," he said. "They can't survive cold weather."
Skidmore said that mosquitoes will soon be everywhere, and the rains expected this week may be the big start for the season.
Skidmore said that it usually takes 48-72 hours before mosquito traps start to fil after heavy rain.
Pest Patrol worker Michael Sherman said the wet weather will cause more than just mosquito problems.
"We're also going to be seeing ants and roaches and rodents and all those other things that come out with the rain," he said.
3NEWS shadowed one of Pest Patrol's technicians as they sprayed a home on the city's South Side. The technician told 3NEWS that careful inspections are encouraged as mosquitoes can easily infiltrate your home.
However, there's still good news.
An online tool uses resident's zip codes along with local weather information to determine how mosquitoes will be for the coming seven days.
The latest local forecast says we're in for an active week of rain, but Skidmore said that the city has already made proper preparations.
"When the rains come and the mosquitoes come, like, we know, and are expecting them to, we are going to be prepared," he said. "We have our machines ready. We have our officers who are scheduled to go out and the ones that we see out in the field at night spraying for mosquitos."
Residents are encouraged to empty stranded water, keep their grass cut, wear insect repellant and avoid the outdoors at dawn and dusk.
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