Weymouth Increases Mosquito Alert Level After EEE Death

WEYMOUTH (CBS) - Spraying the football players with insect repellent is as much a part of practice as the drills now in Weymouth. This is now the first line of defense against mosquitoes. The alert level in the town has been increased to high since an 85-year-old resident became the first person to die from the EEE virus this year.

As dusk draws near, the witching hour for mosquitoes, sports teams are curtailing their practices somewhat. "We changed the practice from 6:00 to 8:00 to 5:30 to 7:30, " said Weymouth Youth Football coach Wayne Hess. "We want to get the kids out of here in their cars and home."

From youth football to the high school, practices are ending at dusk as a precaution while the town considers whether more schedule changes are needed. "There's no reason for them to be practicing late anyway," said parent Christine Scales. "I'm not overly concerned, Weymouth is doing the right thing for the kids."

They are spraying uniforms, spraying anything exposed, and taking no chances. "We had one of our board members check the website for dusk time to know when to have them out," said parent Diane Connolly.

Weymouth is one town that will also have an additional night of spraying and further testing of mosquitoes, unsure if the latest victim actually contracted the virus here. "The reality is we're all exposed everyday no matter what community or town we're in," said Dan McCormack of the Weymouth Public Health Department.

The alert level has also been increased to high in the nearby towns of Hanover, Hanson, Rockland, and Whitman.