The West Central District Health Department (WCDHD) is reminding people to be vigilant in preventing West Nile Virus.

WCDHD says it has received official notification that a mosquito pool in their jurisdiction has tested positive for the virus.

Officials say these positive results should serve as a reminder of the importance of taking precautions to protect yourself from mosquito exposure, saying the best defense against the virus through the use of repellent and eliminating environments that allow mosquitoes to lay eggs and develop.

WCDHD offers the following tips for preventing mosquito exposure:

• Use repellents that contain DEET (up to 30%)
• Wear long sleeves and pants
• Drain standing water
• Dispose of tin cans, plastic containers, ceramic pots or similar water-holding containers that have collected on your property
• Drill holes in the bottom of recycling containers left outside
• Have clogged roof gutters cleaned regularly
• Turn over plastic wading pools and wheel barrows when not in use
• Aerate ornamental pools or stock them with fish
• Use landscaping to eliminate standing water that collect on you property

WCDHD says there have been no confirmed human cases of West Nile Virus which typically peaks in August and September.