West Nile Virus worry spurs spraying in Walker and Catoosa counties

Because of what one official describes as "panic" over West Nile virus, residents in Walker and Catoosa counties are clamoring for mosquito spraying -- even though no confirmed cases of the potentially deadly disease have been reported in Northwest Georgia.

Walker County is spraying for the first time in years because of public concern, while Catoosa County has seen requests for spraying nearly double.

"The public pays taxes; they want you to do spraying," Walker County Coordinator David Ashburn said. "We ordered spray, got it in and are systematically spraying the county now.

"It's not cheap," he said, noting that the concentrated mosquito spray the county buys and mixes with water or mineral oil costs $5,000 to $6,000 per barrel.

County Sole Commissioner Bebe Heiskell restarted the mosquito spraying program a few weeks ago in response to residents' requests, Ashburn said.

Click to Read More (Chattanooga Times-Free Press)