SACRAMENTO—California officials are asking the financial services industry to make sure the swimming pools at homes in foreclosure have been drained to prevent the spread of West Nile virus.
Hundreds of vacant homes with standing water have been reported to authorities in Sacramento and Yolo counties as potential mosquito breeding grounds.
The volume of abandoned homes has grown with the drop in real estate prices and the credit pinch on Wall Street, just as West Nile virus is spreading among mosquitoes. Five people have died from the virus this summer, and the state has had 80 cases.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency last week in the hardest hit counties: Kern, Colusa and San Joaquin. Kern County has reported 38 cases of the virus and two deaths.
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On the Net:
http://www.westnile.ca.gov/.
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Information from: The Sacramento Bee, http://www.sacbee.com/
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