NMCAW: Field Operations Supervisor Shawn Partyka
June 22, 2020
NMCAW: Lab Inspectors Koudai Sugii and Cassie Bowen
June 26, 2020
Julia Line, Mosquito Inspector for MMCD's East Facility
Seasonal inspectors at the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District are one of the largest and most critical parts of our team. Each year around 200 seasonal employees join us as mosquito, catch basin, or lab inspectors. These individuals come from a variety of backgrounds and career stages. This week we caught up with two inspectors from our East facility who come from opposite ends of the career path.
Julia Line, Inspector at East Facility
What is your career background and how long have you been at MMCD?
I graduated from high school in 2019 and started as an inspector last summer. This is my second year with MMCD. In between seasons I studied in South Korea.
What do you like about working for MMCD?
I love being outside and visiting different parts of town. On a nice weather day it's great to be in nature, and I especially love encountering frogs and different flowers.
What's your favorite part of the job of a mosquito inspector?
Going to smaller sites (swamps, ponds) and doing a dip and treat is probably my favorite. We use our dippers to try and find larvae and if we find some we treat with our materials. We are given the freedom to choose where we want to treat and it feels good when you find some and you know you're able to do something about it.
What's a unique part of the job that people may not know?
We treat so many catch basins. People may not realize that we go through the side streets and gutters and treat all the water that's there. Sweep nets are also a unique part of the job. We go into a harborage and stand and wait a minute for mosquitoes to be attracted to our heat and CO2. Then for two minutes we sweep around our head and body and catch everything we can. Then we put what we find in a jar and send it to the lab for identification.
What is one thing you think the public should know about mosquitoes?
Standing water is a big "no no." Any standing water in your yard can heighten the number of mosquitoes.
Tom Ovre, Mosquito Inspector from MMCD's East Facility
Tom Ovre, Inspector at East Facility
What is your career background and how long have you been at MMCD?
I retired as a carpenter and shortly after started with mosquito control. I've been with the district for ten years.
What do you like about working for MMCD?
This job fits like a glove. I'm active all summer long and this work really gives me a sense of purpose. I always say I didn't want to retire from life, I wanted to retire from the work I was doing.
What is your favorite part about being a mosquito inspector?
The District gives us all the knowledge to know where the mosquitoes are - the surveillance work shows us where the nuisance species or disease vectors are found - and then lets us go and do the work. We get to use that data to investigate and find the source.
When you really conquer a site, what a good feeling! After spending a day walking through chest high cattails, it's great to finish and see results.
What is a unique part of the job that people may not know?
We do a lot of work at the State Fairgrounds. We spend time poking in and around trash cans and gutters. We used a drone last year to look at the rooftops of buildings and found a lot of potential breeding habitat for vector mosquitoes. It's a dirty, stinky job, but it yields results.
Another unique thing is that I get to use my carpentry experience to help around the shop. I've built a few items like a stand to organize vials and a weighing table to help ensure we get the exact right amount of control materials.
Tom demonstrating one of the weigh tables he helped build for MMCD.
What is something that the public should know?
We are here to help, not criticize or condemn. I think that people are wary when we want to be near their home or business, but we're not going to report you if we find mosquito habitat, we just want to educate you and help you take care of it. This is such an important public service.
Stay tuned for a new highlight person each day this week to celebrate National Mosquito Control Awareness Week! Also, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for mosquito control tips and news!
