Local News in Brief : Heavy Fog Cancels Medfly Spraying
Aerial spraying of a Malathion-laced bait over a 35-square-mile swath of homes and businesses on the city’s Westside to eradicate a Mediterranean fruit fly infestation was canceled Wednesday night because of heavy fog.
“The ceiling is down to 700 feet and dropping,” explained Tom Palmer, aerial supervisor for the state Department of Food and Agriculture. “Some buildings in Century City are 600 feet tall and 300 feet above sea level.”
Palmer said the three helicopters to be used in the spraying will try again at 7 p.m. tonight, weather permitting.
The target area is densely packed with homes and businesses. Forty Medflies have been found in yards since Sept. 26, indicating a serious infestation that, if allowed to spread, could threaten crops worth $8 billion a year statewide, authorities said.
Among the cities and the sections of Los Angeles affected are Culver City, Palms, Baldwin Hills and West Hollywood.
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