With a dozen local cases of Zika now confirmed in a single neighborhood, Miami-Dade County officials are ramping up efforts to combat the urban mosquito blamed for spreading the virus.
A team of 12 inspectors will be increased to 32 on Tuesday. They will patrol for breeding hotspots and hit those areas with back-pack foggers or other mosquito-killing treatments. More personnel will be added if needed, said public works and waste management spokeswoman Gayle Love.
Outreach efforts that began in February after Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency are also being increased. Over the weekend, the school district used its robo-call system to warn the families of some 355,000 school children to be on guard. The calls follow increased outreach that began with the start of the mosquito season in June, when the county sent mailers to every county resident about “a drain and cover” program which Love said is considered “the first line of defense” against mosquitoes.
Now where will Miami lawyers go to lunch?
An example why state court is fun, via David Ovalle:
True to the social media age, Genesis Davila only learned she had been stripped of her crown as Miss Florida USA when she saw a Facebook post featuring the runner-up accepting the title.
Now, she’s hoping social media will be her salvation.
The key evidence: an Instagram post cited by pageant management that purportedly showed Davila getting professional hair and makeup help, a supposed no-no under contest rules. But at a press conference Monday, her lawyer held up a blown-up photo of the post, pointing out the pic was dated more than a week before July’s Miss Florida contest.
Pageant boss Grant Gravitt Jr. cropped out the date on the Instagram post to falsely smear Davila, lawyer Richard Wolfe said in announcing a defamation lawsuit seeking $15 million — and a return of her crown.