More mosquitoes collected in Miami Beach have tested positive for the Zika virus, officials announced Friday.
The sample was found in the same area of Miami Beach where three other samples that tested positive for Zika earlier this month were found, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
"Despite relentless efforts by the city and the county, this new discovery shows that the Zika threat continues to grow. Today’s announcement reinforces the need for us to continue being as aggressive as we can be against Zika," Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine said in a statement. "I will continue working closely with state and county officials, as well as with city staff to ensure that I am doing everything in my power to protect the health and wellbeing of our residents and visitors."
The news comes the same day aerial spraying for mosquitoes began in Miami Beach, following a 1-day delay.
"The fact that we have identified a fourth Zika-positive mosquito pool in Miami Beach serves as further confirmation that we must continue our proactive and aggressive approach to controlling the mosquito population, including our recent decision to begin aerial spraying in combination with larvicide treatment by truck," Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez said in a statement. "We will continue to work in close collaboration with the health and environmental experts and the City of Miami Beach to keep our community safe from the Zika virus."
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam said he's extending a mosquito declaration - which calls for emptying standing water, insecticide treatments and other measures - for another 45 days.
More than 2,900 mosquito samples, about 48,000 mosquitoes total, have been tested since May, officials said. Officials say 56 non-travel related Zika cases have been confirmed in Florida, many of them in the area in Miami Beach and Wynwood.
