Experts from the Agricultural Experiment Station are monitoring mosquito traps around the state.
State officials are preparing to respond if there are any signs the Zika virus is being transmitted in Connecticut. Experts from several state agencies met Wednesday to put together a plan to combat the spread of the disease.
Experts from the Agricultural Experiment Station continue to monitor mosquito traps around the state for any insect carrying Zika.
The Department of Public Health is also on the lookout for any person testing positive for the disease who hasn’t traveled to an area already known to be affected.
"So far we have not seen any local transmission," said Dr. Raul Pino, the commissioner of the Department of Public Health. "But we are prepared for the event that that happens."
"We have the ability to do a number of things," Governor Dannel Malloy told a news conference, "not the least of which is to do ground spraying to do our best to eliminate the mosquito, should we find it present and carrying Zika virus."
He also urged Congress to make funds available to put a federal Zika plan into action. "Congress must act to help states like ours make the necessary preparations," he said.
So far, 61 people have tested positive for Zika in Connecticut, including four pregnant women. All are known to have traveled to affected areas, or had contact with people who had.
Asian tiger mosquitos -- Aedes albopictus, one of two species known to carry Zika -- are found most frequently in the southwest of the state.
