Five cases of local Zika virus transmission have been reported in Miami Beach, widening the area of Zika exposure after a week of hopeful speculation that the outbreak had been contained. Two infants with Zika-related microcephaly have been born in California this year to women who had Zika virus infections during pregnancy after spending time in an area where the virus is circulating in mosquitoes.
The Aug. 18 World Health Organization weekly Zika situation report for the first time added Bahamas to countries and territories reporting mosquito-borne Zika virus infections.
Pregnant women and those who want to become pregnant are urged to stay away from two areas - a 1.5 square mile (3.9 square kilometer) section of Miami Beach and a neighborhood north of downtown called Wynwood - where mosquitoes are actively spreading the disease, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
"If investigations reveal additional areas of likely active transmission, the department will announce a defined area of concern", said by Mara Gambineri, a spokeswoman for the health department.
Zika, which has extended through a large part of Latin America and the Caribbean, can cause pregnant women to have babies with microcephalic deformity and neurological problems.
Scott told reporters Friday that five Zika infections have been linked to an area that encompasses most of tourist-friendly South Beach. Dozens of infections have been traced to this neighborhood as public health officials wage a seemingly losing war to stop its spread.
Scott nevertheless said aggressive mosquito control efforts had cleared a total of 17 blocks of the Wynwood area, based on tests administered to residents.
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Three vacuum trucks purchased to help Miami Beach fight rising sea levels have been used since the beginning of the year to drain water in low-lying areas where mosquitoes could breed, said Roy Coley, the city's infrastructure director.
The Defense Department also offered to relocate family members of active-duty personnel and civilian employees assigned to regions at higher risk for Zika.
Officials continue to struggle with controlling mosquitos in the Wynwood area of Miami, Frieden said. Unfortunately, a Zika map of Mexico shows that travel to Mexico should be taken with precaution. "This wasn't even a thought previous year".
Matthew DeGennaro from Florida International University says current methods of preventing Zika transmission are only proving limited success. But the virus only causes mild, flu-like symptoms in most people, making it hard to confirm local transmissions, the CDC said.
The CDC is telling pregnant women and even their spouses to avoid traveling to Miami-Dade. Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said that the American people can not afford to wait any longer for action.
In March, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved an experimental test to check blood donations for the Zika virus. But lawmakers left Washington in mid-July for a seven-week recess without approving any of the money.
Republicans angered Democrats by adding a provision to a $1.1 billion take-it-or-leave-it measure that would have blocked Planned Parenthood clinics in Puerto Rico from receiving money.
