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Congresswoman Graham's Latest Workday Aimed At Helping Fight Zika Virus

Working with the Bay County Mosquito Control Division,Congresswoman Gwen Graham (D-FL) finds mosquito larvae in an empty pet carrier.
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

North Florida Congresswoman Gwen Graham’s latest workday involved helping to prevent the spread of the Zika virus.

Graham’s workday with members of the Bay County Mosquito Control Division involved looking for standing water where mosquito larvae could potentially breed, like inside empty trash cans and flower pot dishes.

“Actually, we found an unusual place, quite a few larvae in a pet carrier that was empty, but had been out in the rain,” she said, in a video.

Graham also got a firsthand-look at how the division works to combat the Zika virus, the mosquito-borne disease that can cause severe birth defects.

“We are taking samples of the water that have the larvae in them in order to take them back to the lab and test to see if these are the type of mosquito larvae that carry the Zika virus,” she added.

In addition to her workday, Graham has been part of a bipartisan push among Florida’s Congressional Delegation to fully fund President Obama’s request of $1.9 billion to help fight Zika. Having separate funding bills, Congress is still divided over the number.

For more news updates, follow Sascha Cordner on Twitter: @SaschaCordner .

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