City health department prepping for summer

CONNEAUT – City of Conneaut Health Commissioner Nichele Blood sat before city council and held up a mosquito trap.
Through the demonstration, Blood explained how the health department’s staff is conducting surveillance on the pests.
“The way that this contraption works is that we mix, basically, fermented grass clippings and rabbit food, and we put that in the bottom of (the trap),” Blood said during a regular council meeting on Monday, April 27. “This does have a cord for a battery, and there’s a small fan on the inside of the tube which sucks the mosquitoes up. They’re trying to lay their eggs on the mosquito brew itself, so the mosquitoes will get sucked in and up. And then once they get in here, they’re trapped in this net. We then collect those nets, we put them in a freezer, and then send them down to ODH) Ohio Department of Health) for testing for diseases, West Nile virus being one of them.”
The Conneaut Health Department began its mosquito surveillance after it received a grant award in 2025.
“One of the reasons why we were able to see the surveillance last year was because we received the mosquito control grant from Ohio EPA,” Blood said. “We did reapply for it, and I found out this afternoon that we did get it again, so we will be able to help with the tire take back day, too.”
Blood’s staff installed traps at seven locations in the city in 2025 and collected 285 mosquitoes. None of them tested positive for West Nile virus.
“The sheets that I gave you guys show that, in 2025, we had 45 cases of West Nile virus throughout the State of Ohio,” Blood said. “Those are individuals who actually tested positive for West Nile virus. That is not the collection of the mosquitoes that were tested.”
The City of Ashtabula, which also runs mosquito surveillance, had one mosquito test positive for West Nile.
“It is closer than we think,” Blood said.
The health department will post the traps in the city and asks that the public not tamper with them.
“Typically, these are in the woods,” Blood said. “We do have a sign that says, ‘Property of the Conneaut City Health Department, please do not touch.’”
The department is looking to collect more mosquitoes in 2026 than it did a year ago.
“We’re going to work on perfecting our mosquito brew, I guess you could say, to collect more mosquitoes,” Blood said. “Two hundred and eighty-five mosquitoes for the summer is actually extremely low. I found out Ashtabula city collected 1,800 mosquitoes, so something was wrong, probably with our brew. We’re going to work it out.”
Blood told council the health department is conducting a survey through the its webpage and Facebook page.
“I would like feedback from the residents of Conneaut if they are seeing high-traffic areas for mosquitoes or high standing water,” Blood said. “We’re trying to find different locations.”
“I would like some feedback from the residents on where they are seeing high levels (of mosquitoes) so we can potentially use it as a site,” Blood continued.
Blood also reported on instances of Lyme disease as a result of ticks.
“As of April 9, there have been 137 cases reported to ODH of actual individuals that tested positive for Lyme disease,” Blood said.
The health commissioner expects a rise in that category in 2026.
“I did go back five years to kind of figure out our average that we are seeing here within the city limits,” Blood said. “We’re seeing about 10.6 individuals per year testing positive for Lyme disease. (ODH Director) Dr. (Bruce) Vanderhoff did talk last week in a press conference. In 2010, we saw 40 cases of Lyme disease. In 2020, we saw 400, and then in 2025 we saw 2,800 cases of Lyme disease. We’re still seeing that increase, and we will probably see the increase continue to rise for the 2026 year.”
Residents should take precautions.
“Obviously, protect yourselves when you’re out in the woods,” Blood said. “Wear light clothing. Wear repellent. Check yourself. Check yourself for ticks once you do come in.”
A donation to the health department allowed Blood and her staff to assist the city’s residents when it comes to preventing Lyme disease.
“We were able to make tick kits that have information in them and actual tick removers,” Blood said. “We do have these in our office. We plan on handing them out at the Pollinator Society and then, also, Discovery Day in September. We only have a small handful of them, but if you want one, please come into the office.”
Blood also announced the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be baiting for rabies through May 13.
“These are little baits that they are dropping from helicopters, fixed-wing me and then, also, they are hand baiting, as well,” Blood said. “I have seen an increase of phone calls this year over years past, where people have been seeing them a lot more, just in their yard and not in the actual woods. I don’t know if, when they’re throwing them from the helicopter or the airplane, they’re just being thrown closer to the house than you would typically see, but these are meant for wildlife consumption, so if you see any that are spread on the ground, just leave them alone.”
If one of the baits is found where children or pets can be affected, they can be moved or put in the trash.
“If they’re in an area where pets or children could come across one, you can grab them with either a paper towel or gloves and either put them in a Ziploc bag and throw them out in the trash, or throw them in the woods or anywhere that’s not close to your home,” Blood said. “If handled, make sure that you wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water if the packet was punctured.”
“If you are exposed to liquid inside, then the bait could potentially cause fever, sore throat, headache or conjunctivitis,” Blood continued. “If you do have these symptoms, please contact your primary care physician. Pets that consume numerous baits could experience vomiting or diarrhea, so you want to limit them being exposed.”
The baits should not be lethal for a pet, but if consumed, a veterinarian can be contacted.