NEW BRITAIN -- Students at Central Connecticut State University received an email this afternoon warning them about the EEE virus.
School administration are passing out free mosquito repellant wipes to students to help provide a little extra protection.
“I don’t want to get bit so I’m wearing long pants and have my windbreaker on. Everyone’s kind of covering up now,” said Freshman Maddie Ceci.
Ceci is one of the many students who received the email warning students.
CCSU is voluntarily taking precautions to protect students and visitors from the dangers of the neurological virus.
“I know like club sports they stopped them at 6:00,” said Ceci. “They said that they turned off the sprinklers because they don’t want extra water.”
In addition, the University is limiting the exposure of their athletes and fans by moving practices and games to safer hours of the day. Any athletics between 6:30 pm and 7:30 am will be rescheduled.
“There’s no harm in moving a game from 6 o’clock to 3 o’clock,” said Tom Pincince the Assistant Athletic Director of Communication and Media Services. “If people can come and enjoy it without having to worry about it then that’s something we thought we should do.”
Only a couple of Men’s Soccer games needed to be rescheduled so far. It was mostly practices for sports like soccer, lacrosse and softball that needed to be maneuvered around. No Blue Devil football games will be impacted.
Pincince says all of the visiting teams and referees have been very accommodating of their requests.
“I think a lot of teams are going through this. A lot of teams in our area,” said Pincince.
Across the state, a number of high school games under the lights have been effected. At least 14 football games have been rescheduled or postponed.
Some cities and towns including South Windsor have been spraying parks, trails and other town properties to limit one’s exposure to mosquitoes.
The DOT has added billboards to highways warning out-of-state drivers of the concerns.
“State government is being cautious on your behalf and we are urging you to be careful,” said Governor Ned Lamont on Wednesday. “No need to panic.”
FOX61 meteorologists say the first hard frost of the year in the central part of the state tends to come around the second week of October.