The idea to end outdoor activities near sunset to protect people from a deadly mosquito-borne virus is not new. This year’s public outcry about the measure is.
In 2005, 2012 and 2019, towns in Massachusetts and Connecticut asked residents to curb outdoor activities during outbreaks of eastern equine encephalitis, an infection also known as EEE, with little fanfare or attention.
Last week, however, when officials in Oxford, Massachusetts, announced a voluntary curfew and urged residents to finish outdoor activities before 6 p.m. through the end of September – and 5 p.m. in October until the first hard frost – some residents weren’t happy. About 200 showed up to a town meeting where the measure was discussed.
There wasn’t the same kind of protest over similar measures to prevent the spread of EEE in 2019, said Philip Davis, president of Oxford’s Little League.
“In my family, we were completely done when Covid ended. We were done being locked inside, being scared. Living scared is no way to live,” he said.
But with the 2019 EEE curfews in recent memory, followed shortly after that by Covid restrictions, he said, “I think everybody at this point in time was just, ‘Enough is enough. Let’s put the decision-making back to parents.’ ”
Eastern equine encephalitis is caused by a virus that’s passed to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. The virus often travels to the brain, where it causes swelling or inflammation. The first symptoms can include a sudden headache, high fever, chills and vomiting that may progress to disorientation, seizures and coma. Severe cases are rare. About 11 human infections are reported in the US each year, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The mosquitoes that spread EEE are most active at dusk and dawn.
“I would imagine the dusk-to-dawn curfew decision wasn’t taken lightly by the local and state health departments,” said Dr. Kristy Murray, who is an expert in mosquito-borne viruses at Emory University.
Lori Freeman, the chief executive officer of the National Association of County and City Health Officials, known as NACCHO, said a curfew does a few things: It gets people off the street when they’re most likely to be bitten; it gets people’s attention, alerting them to the threat in the first place; and finally, in some cases, it makes it safer for people when crews need to spray chemical insecticides that kill adult mosquitos to control the bug population.
Oxford and three other towns – Douglas, Sutton and Webster – were classified as being at critical risk of EEE on August 16 after a person and a horse in the area tested positive for the infection, which kills about 1 in 3 people who get it and leaves about 50% of survivors with lasting neurologic problems, according to the CDC. There is no specific treatment for the illness.
Oxford Town Manager Jennifer Callahan wrote a public letter to the town’s board of health to tell them that the person who tested positive lived in Oxford. She wrote that the person’s family members had reached out and urged town officials to warn others.
That wasn’t enough to convince some parents and coaches, however. On Monday, a petition on Change.org to protest the proposal had more than 880 signatures.
“My children lost so much of their childhood already because of Covid. Playing football and cheering had provided them some sort of normalcy throughout the years. … Please don’t shut down the fields,” wrote one person who identified herself as an ER nurse, adding that she understood the risk of EEE and thought it could be managed through other measures like spraying and wearing protective clothing.
“Government overreach in the name of safety has upended the lives of our kids enough,” another commenter wrote.
Rike Sterrett, Oxford’s director of public health services, understands that the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions were deeply felt by both parents and kids and left a long shadow over public health. She stresses that the town’s curfew is a recommendation and is voluntary.
Public schools are following the voluntary guidance, Sterrett said. They aren’t canceling activities and sports but rescheduling them or moving practices indoors when possible.
The town even carved out an exemption for outside groups that want to continue to use city property. They can continue to play on city fields after hours if they sign a legal form saying they understand the risks and provide proof of adequate insurance.
“So you don’t have those evening under-the-lights games, and it’s just adjusting those practice schedules,” she said.
Sterrett said she worked for the town of Marlborough, Massachusetts, in 2019, which was also a bad year for EEE, with 12 human cases across the US. Officials there made similar recommendations to end outdoor activities shortly before dusk.
“In 2019, I feel like there was a little bit less pushback about these recommendations, but there was still some,” Sterrett said, adding that she understands that people want to be outside enjoying the last bit of temperate weather for the year.
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At the same time, the call for restrictions on outdoor activities has helped lead to some much-needed public awareness about the infection and the need to avoid mosquito bites.
“The education, at least, I’m hopeful it’s getting out there,” Sterrett said.
Davis said he’s still working with local officials to try to make the recommendations more flexible.
Parents would like to see the town hew to the state’s recommendation, which is to restrict activity outdoors from dusk until dawn, “which is a huge difference,” he said.
On Tuesday night, for example, dusk is expected to be around 8 p.m., two hours after the recommended curfew.
Davis said his Little League organization plans to sign the town’s required waiver and has the insurance necessary to play on the fields after the curfew. He said he will advise his coaches to end practices a half-hour before dusk to get players off the fields and give them time to pick up equipment and get inside, themselves.
It will be well past 6 p.m.
“We felt as though this was just the wrong thing to do,” Davis said.