[KHTS] – Dozens of Santa Clarita Valley residents have taken to Facebook to voice concerns about an alleged gnat problem in Central Park, while Santa Clarita city officials said their initial inspection failed to find an infestation.
Several Santa Clarita residents posted comments noting the gnats disrupted their Concerts in the Park experience, an annual summer concert series hosted by Santa Clarita on Saturdays.
“We went to Concerts in the Park and set up our easy-up earlier in the day and we were just walking through clouds of (gnats),” said Stacy Fortner, of Valencia. “It seemed like there were millions and millions of gnats. When you looked down at your legs, they just covered your legs…. When I put it out to the public on the Santa Clarita Community page (on Facebook), the response was overwhelming.”
Gail Morgan, spokeswoman for the city of Santa Clarita, said the city’s director of parks, recreation and community service “did not notice an abundance of gnats,” and confirmed a Vector Control technician performed an inspection on Wednesday.
“He did a cursory review of the park and said that there are no mosquitoes, no mosquito traps and no standing water to attract them,” Morgan said. “He didn’t see any problem just taking a cursory view, but said he would specifically check for gnats (Thursday).”
A technician from the Los Angeles County Vector Control District’s Sylmar office reportedly performed an inspection at the park Wednesday morning following a request from Fortner, and spoke with park officials about the problem, she said.
The technician offered to go to the park and create a report on his findings, Fortner added.
“I spoke to (him) this morning,” she said. “When he did his inspection, he said they covered his face, were in his nose, his hands were covered, his legs were covered. They have a gnat issue.”
The technician, who is a Saugus resident, declined to comment Wednesday afternoon.
The official mentioned overwatering and a cluttered drainage system as part of the problem, which would make a breeding ground for gnats, Fortner said.
Vector Control officials confirmed their technician performed an inspection at Central Park Wednesday morning, but stated they only handle mosquito problems and would be unable to offer a solution to a gnat problem.
“One of my technicians is going to bring some of the gnats back to the lab so we can identify them, but they’re not mosquitos,” said Wes Collins, operations supervisor at Vector Control’s Sylmar office. “Once we identify them, we can let the park know what type of gnats they are and they can take the appropriate action.”
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32 Comments
the so called NATS are actually the no-see-ums that live in the grasses!
Bring a can of some highly flammable aerosol propelled substance and torch em
Mike Cowhick
I live in the neighborhood connected to the park (off of Paraguay dr.) and I can attest there is an issue. We have never had such an infestation of gnats until just recently
They are from the drones!!!
My daughter’s and I walk 3x week there, and we do notice many gnats at 7 pm!
We also l
We were there last night for softball and they were terrible! It seems since it is more humid, they are more noticeable.
They are awful this year. I take my dogs to the dog park and I am constantly swatting them off of myself
Such a big city problem.
Ummm it’s a park .. Which is outside … Are we that spoiled ?
Ummm it’s a park .. Which is outside … Are we that spoiled ?
I am at Central Park right now and they are all over me. It is nasty!
I am at Central Park right now and they are all over me. It is nasty!
This is embarrassing
This is embarrassing
They are a little teeny weenie problem in Acton as well
They are a little teeny weenie problem in Acton as well
Every morning this week – tried to do some meditation there with no luck due to gnats…
Every morning this week – tried to do some meditation there with no luck due to gnats…
The gnats are bad this year all over this valley!
My yard is also invading by these pesky gnats!
Gnats are a small issue compared to the huge drug issues in this town, Herion, Meth, etc.!
Maybe if the start letting people fly their rc planes, helicopters and quad copters they would go away
Fleas are bad this year too. My Dachshund is 10 and never had a flea on her til this year.
Gee whiz, just get he Director Of Parks to outlaw those pesky dangerous flying things!!!
Overwatering? Isn’t the city asking us to cut our water consumption due to the drought?
Overwatering? Isn’t the city asking us to cut our water consumption due to the drought?
We had a relatively warm winter which means more insects survived to breed in the spring. I’m a lot more worried about mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus than I am about gnats, which are a nuisance but not a health hazard.
And an observation regarding insects: the Argentine ants, always an issue in Santa Clarita, are worse than usual this year.
We have tons at my house up Seco
So weird, we have a bunch of gnats in our yard!