Spraying for encephalitis was delayed in Nassau County by attorney Thomas Liotti's push for an injunction against the use of Anvil. State Supreme Court Justice Leonard Austin ordered the county to prove its spraying efforts were legal. His approval of the spraying was announced on Tuesday, Oct. 5. Weather delayed the spraying further and Friday night, Oct. 9, Nassau County began spraying Anvil, (a pesticide substitute for Malathion, a neurotoxin used in New York City,) in the center of Long Island. In Jericho, helicopters were spraying the Waldbaum's parking lot at around 8 p.m.

The north shore was sprayed on Saturday, between 5 and 10 p.m. - but not in Centre Island and Bayville.

Nassau County Board of Health Spokesperson Cynthia Brown said on Monday, Oct. 11, that what next happens in Bayville and Centre Island will be determined by their mosquito counts. She said that both areas have been sprayed once, and no determination has been made for spraying them a second time - as of presstime.

Centre Island Mayor Jack Williams said he and Mayor Siegel both "hollered at the county. We are the squeaky wheels," he said. Their complaints resulted in the villages being exempted from the weekend spraying.

The reason is that both areas are surrounded by sensitive wetlands. They still may get another round of ground fogging. The first spraying took place on Sept. 26. The trucks doing the spraying sent out the gases 150 feet on both sides of the machine. The Centre Island Police sprayed in areas the trucks didn't reach.

Centre Island residents knew something was wrong just as the threat of encephalitis carrying mosquitoes was hitting the airwaves. On Sept. 25, residents were calling the village police and reporting finding dead crows.

Mayor Williams said "The crows are killed by encephalitis. An infected crow, bitten by a mosquito gets sick and gets bitten by another mosquito who then gets the disease. It's a chain reaction."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Nile encephalitis is a flavivirus commonly found in Africa, West Asia and the Middle East and is transmitted by the bite of a mosquito, primarily the Culex species. The CDC website states, "Mosquitoes become infected by feeding on birds infected with the West Nile virus. Infected mosquitoes then transmit the West Nile virus to humans and animals when taking a bloodmeal. West Nile encephalitis is not transmitted from person-to-person. There is no evidence that a person can get the virus from handling live or dead infected birds.

However, said the CDC, avoid bare-handed contact when handling dead animals, including dead birds. Use gloves or double plastic bags to place the carcass in a garbage can." (Anyone who finds a dead bird that does not appear to have been injured is urged to contact the Nassau County Health Department at 571-8707.)

Jack Williams, said when he called on Sept. 25, he wasn't getting any action from the Nassau County Board of Health - "there was one guy working for the program. When we told him of the crow-deaths, he said 'put the crows in the garbage.'

"I was not satisfied with that. There were five crows found dead in the county and there were 10 crows found dead in the one and a half square mile that is Centre Island. I told them unless they did something, I would call Newsday or News 12. He sent a worker to pick up the crows and to set mosquito traps."

They did that and at 3 p.m. Sunday, they called back to say what they found in the traps and said they were coming to spray at 7 p.m.

There was no time to alert the residents. I was hosting a Friends of the Bay party at 7 p.m. that day."

Jamie and David Deming hosted a fund raiser for Friends of the Bay on Sunday, Sept. 26. About 100 supporters of FOB enjoyed A Taste of Long Island, celebrating the wines of Long Island and the work of Friends of the Bay.

Mr. Williams said he had to get the message out about the spraying quickly. "Centre Island has three pockets of 1/2 and 1/4 acre zoning so I appointed block captains to go and knock on doors and tell residents what was happening.

I had people making telephone calls and the police went around the Island with loud speakers," he said.

"Centre Island has lots of back alleys and nooks and crannies so I had the police go around to spray too. They used Scourge for the spraying.

"Then I got in touch with Victoria Siegel, the mayor of Bayville and they were sprayed next," he said.

Previously, reported the CDC, in other areas of the world, birds reportedly infected did not die from the disease, but here in NY the link between the deaths of birds and the disease seems clear. Until freezing temperatures can kill off the mosquitoes, the threat of infection continues, despite efforts to spray and ward off mosquitoes with DEET. As all residents are at risk for becoming infected, concern remains high.

The CDC also reports, "Infected mosquitoes are the primary vector for West Nile virus and the source of this outbreak. Ticks have been found infected with West Nile virus in Asia and Africa. Their role in the transmission and maintenance of the virus is uncertain. However, as it relates to the New York area outbreak, ticks have not been implicated as vectors of West Nile virus. It is not known how long West Nile virus has been in the US, but CDC scientists believe the virus has probably been in the eastern US for several months, possibly longer. The virus found in NY is genetically related to West Nile virus, but because of genetic differences, it may be a new subtype of West Nile virus. Laboratory testing to confirm this continues. No cases have previously been reported in the US prior to September 1999. No reliable estimates are available for the number of cases of West Nile encephalitis that occur internationally."

According to the CDC, "Case fatality rates" for West Nile virus specifically, "range from 3 percent to 15 percent (higher in elderly than in younger age groups). There is no specific therapy. Intensive support therapy is indicated for more severe cases. There is no documented evidence that a pregnancy is at risk due to infection with West Nile virus." The CDC reports that the incubation period is usually 5 to 15 days and the Kids Health Organization reports that the acute phase of the illness usually lasts from a few days to one week. Recovery usually takes about three weeks. Some cases require hospitalization.

According to Marjorie Lazoff, M.D., medical editor for Medical Computing Today, "The classic presentation is encephalopathy with diffuse or focal neurological symptoms including the following: behavioral and personality changes, decreased consciousness; stiff neck; photophobia; lethargy; generalized or localized seizures; acute confusion or amnestic states; less common and dramatic symptoms include headache and other complaints of meningismyms."

Residents can call the Nassau County Health Department at 571-8707, 571-8708, or 573-7055 for more information or the State Health Department at 1-888-697-4234.