Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun calls for NSW Premier Chris Minns to address mosquito plague

Residents at their wit’s end have described being unable to escape a mosquito “plague” in parts of southwest Sydney, where the pesky insects have left some locals in tears.

Mosquito larvae found at the Sydney Water recycling plant.

Residents at their wit’s end have described being unable to escape a “tornado of mozzies”, in parts of southwest Sydney, where a mosquito plague has descended following an outbreak of larvae at a water recycling plant.

The insect explosion has become so bad, a local mayor has urged Premier Chris Minns to address the “urgent health issue”.

Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun described the outbreak of mosquitoes as “very serious” after his council was “inundated” with complaints from residents, prompting an investigation at the Sydney Water Liverpool Recycling Plant in Warwick Farm.

Mr Mannoun referenced an inspection, conducted by a Liverpool Council officer and Associate Professor Cameron Webb on Thursday, which found the plant was the “primary source” of the outbreak in the Chipping Norton area.

Swarms of mosquitoes (black dots) are plaguing Sydney's southwest.

He said the settlement ponds in the plant were completely covered with vegetation, which provided ideal conditions for mosquitoes to breed, and an “exceptional number” of larvae had been discovered.

Mr Mannoun told The Daily Telegraph it appeared Sydney Water wasn’t looking after its “water bodies” and the “massive outbreak” could lead to “very bad diseases” like the Ross River virus.

The vegetation, which provides ideal conditions for mosquitoes to breed.

The mayor was most concerned about how close the plant was to services.

“Liverpool Hospital is inundated with mosquitoes and the schools are inundated,” he said.

“If they start getting Ross River ... you could have a pandemic on your hands.”

Tanya Kaur, the co-owner of U8F Ultim8 Fitness in Chipping Norton, said she had been attacked by mosquitoes at all hours of the day.

“When I’m leaving the gym around 6.30pm, the mozzies come into my car while I’m driving home,” she said.

“It’s like the plague,” she said.

“I’ve never seen anything like this ... when we brush the trees out the front of the business, hundreds of them (mosquitoes) fall out and some even follow me inside”.

Co-owner Michael Paps said he had spent about $500 in the last two weeks on sprays and zappers to eradicate the pesky insects.

“I go up into the office and I have to bomb the room in Mortein and we’re there breathing in all these chemicals,” he said.

“One can of Mortein is around $17. I bought six of them and they’ll be gone in a couple of days.”

Co-owners of U8F Gym in Chipping Norton Michael Paps and Tanya Kaur who are affected by the mosquito plague that has descended on Southwest Sydney. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Mr Paps and Ms Kaur agreed the mosquitoes were affecting their mental health and could see their customers were at their “wit’s ends”, with some covered in welts from bites.

“The kids who are coming in here with welts on their faces, they’re in tears and it breaks your heart as the parents don’t know what to do,” Ms Kaur said on Friday.

“Michael was spraying yesterday and a cloud of mozzies ascended, literally this tornado of mozzies ... it’s so bad it’s affecting our mental health.”

Mr Paps, who lives in Moorebank, said the insects were the “worst” he’s ever seen.

“I’m not just dealing with it at home, I’m dealing it without throughout the day (at work),” he said.

“It’s very stressful.”

U8F Gym in Chipping Norton’s Michael Paps and Tanya Kaur who are affected by the mosquito plague that has descended on Southwest Sydney. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Mr Mannoun called it an “urgent health issue” that NSW Premier Chris Minns to “needs to get involved with”.

He said Liverpool Council would be “hitting the phones” to politicians, as well as working with Sydney Water to contain the outbreak.

“We’ll look at other bodies of waters ... we can’t leave anything to risk here,” Mr Mannoun said.

“Yes, we’ve had mosquito issues from time to time ... (but) I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

Joe Candelori, a resident of Denham Close resident in Liverpool, said the council’s response to the problem was “little too late” as mosquitoes had been an issue for “years”.

“(The council) admitted this is going to get worse before it gets better,” he said.

“We just have to cop it. Next season, they need to get their act together.”

Mr Candelori said mosquitoes weren’t a “new problem” and he had spent hundreds of dollars in an attempt to manage the swarm at his home.

“You can’t escape them. You go to simply get in or out of the house and they get in somehow,” he said.

A NSW Government spokesman said community safety was always its priority, and that it was working with Sydney Water to address the threat of mosquitoes in parts of western Sydney.

“We encourage the council to continue working collaboratively with NSW Health and Water NSW to address this issue and on work to mitigate future risks of this occurring,” the spokesman said.

Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun is concerned with how close the plant is to residential areas.

A Sydney Water spokesman said it was working alongside Liverpool Council and a public health expert “after being alerted to concerns of increased mosquitoes.

“Sydney Water has identified potential treatment options, including vegetation management and chemical treatment which will mitigate further breeding in the area,” the spokesman said.

Mr Webb directed requests for comment to Sydney Water and Liverpool Council.

It has sparked outrage online, with residents airing their concerns, saying the issue was becoming “very concerning”.

One Facebook user said her children were “all severely allergic” to mosquito bites and playing in their backyard was “sadly now out of our daily routine”.

Another Facebook user said her child had “welts all over them” and that members of her family had to “hold our breath” to leave their house.

Originally published as Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun calls for NSW Premier Chris Minns to address mosquito plague