Earle hitting back against mosquitoes
Earle hitting back against mosquitoes
City urging residents to do their part
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Earle has begun spraying for mosquitoes but is also urging residents to do their part by mowing their grass and cleaning up their property.
The city got behind on both mowing and spraying for mosquitoes last year after most of its equipment broke down.
Mayor Carolyn Jones and the City Council have made it a priority this year to fix broken equipment and stay on top of mowing and mosquitoes.
“We need to get a jump on this,” said Councilman Donnie Cheers. “With the Zika virus out there we need to kill some mosquitoes early. We need to start spraying. We’ve got the funds.”
The city charges residents a fee on their water bill for mosquito control.
Councilwoman Jimmie Barham agreed.
“It would be nice to get ahead of it,” Barham added.
Councilman Robert Malone said residents need to do their part as well.
The city has limited resources and can not continue to cut overgrown lots for free.
Malone pointed out that residents are quick to complain about mosquitoes and tall grass but don’t take care of their own property.
“We used to spray at night,” Malone said. “Then people complained it didn’t do any good. Then they used another chemical and people complained it got on their car. There are some things the city can do. But there are some things you can do.
Mow your grass. We need to come together and take care of these things.”
Councilman Bobby Luckett said there have been many times over the years when individual members of the council have gone out and mowed and cleaned up lots.
Luckett urged patience on the part of residents.
“We get all the blame for stuff,” Luckett said. “But nobody wants to do their part. I know that we are stretched to the limit. People don’t understand that. We are doing the best we can with what we got.” Mayor Jones, who often gets all of the blame, said the city is working hard to mow the grass and keep the city clean, but pointed out that the city only has four workers.
“It can’t be done overnight,” Jones said. “I wish it could. But they can’t.”
Jones said past councils and administrations have promised over and over again to mow yards and put liens on properties who don’t comply with city ordinances but haven’t followed through.
“We were going to mow yards and put liens on property,” Jones said. “But have we done that? No. We all have a responsibility. All of us.”
“We need to come together and take care of these things,” Malone agreed.
Cheers said spraying for mosquitoes and fixing the city’s equipment is a good start.
“We can’t please everybody,” Cheers said. “But we can do what we can
do.”
By Mark Randall
