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Florida Zika cases rise to 25
But infections are limited to a 1-square-mile area
W Zika Florida Heal 2
Jade Brown, 7, right, touches the stomach of his mother, Gabriella Acevedo, who is eight months pregnant, as they leave the Borinquen Medical Center, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2016, in Miami. The CDC has advised pregnant women to avoid travel to the nearby neighborhood of Wynwood, where mosquitoes are apparently transmitting Zika directly to humans. Acevedo has not been tested for the Zika virus and is concerned for the health of her unborn child. - photo by Associated Press

MIAMI - Florida's caseload of Zika spread by Miami mosquitoes has risen to 25, and U.S. health officials continue to warn pregnant women to avoid the infection zone despite the governor's assurances that the area of concern is shrinking.

Florida's Department of Health says active transmission has been only happening in a 1-square-mile area encompassing Miami's Wynwood arts district.

Scott's office also announced that the health department has declared four blocks in the southwest corner of Wynwood to be clear of infections as preventative measures continue, in addition to another 10-block section cleared last week.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, still advises pregnant women to avoid the entire neighborhood. "All I can say is the travel advisory is still in effect," CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said.

Zika is a mosquito-borne virus that only causes mild, flu-like symptoms in most people. But it can cause severe brain-related defects, including disastrously small heads, if women are infected during pregnancy.

Back-to-school day is Aug. 22 in Miami, and while students returning to class in Wynwood will be allowed to wear pants and long-sleeved shirts that don't match their school uniforms, they still can't bring mosquito repellent to campus.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said at a school board meeting Wednesday that "aggressive application" of repellent should be done at home, not at school where some students may be allergic to the spray. Some 4,000 students attend six schools in the Wynwood arts district.

The Miami Herald reports (http://hrld.us/2b7TVfU ) that state health workers will be stationed at each school to check for mosquito breeding sites and provide parents with repellent.

Aerial spraying of pesticides targeting adult mosquitoes was scheduled Friday over Wynwood as well as surrounding areas, and tablets of larvae-eating bacteria are being dropped into storm drains throughout Miami-Dade County.

 

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