Miami Beach residents were not informed of their proximity to four traps used to catch live Zika-infected mosquitoes in August and September, according to Miami Herald.
On Wednesday, the locations were released after the Herald sued Miami-Dade County to make them public. On Sept. 23, during the court proceedings, a county attorney said the Florida Department of Health ordered county officials not to disclose the sites of mosquito traps.
Mara Gambineri, a state health department spokeswoman, told the Herald in an email, "At no time did the Florida Department of Health instruct Miami-Dade County to withhold the location of mosquito traps. This is solely the decision of the county."
On Sept. 25, responding to the state health department's denial of culpability, Carlos A. Gimenez, mayor of Miami-Dade County, said state health officials indeed told the county to keep the sites secret. Additionally, Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine corroborated Mayor Gimenez's statement.
The mosquito trap sites were placed in residential areas, some of which near schools and tourist destinations, according to the Herald. Miami-Dade officials told the Herald that the county will inform the public on the location of future Zika-positive mosquito traps moving forward.
More articles on the Zika virus:
CDC isn't using the most accurate Zika test available, whistle-blower says
Sanofi receives $43.2M to accelerate Zika vaccine development
4 suspected cases of Zika-related microcephaly in Thailand