Peru fumigates stadium to head off Zika

An aedes aegypti mosquito is seen inside Oxitec laboratory in Campinas, Brazil, February 2, 2016. Health experts are bracing for Zika virus to spread to the United States by April or May, borne by a mosquito that craves human blood, feeds during the day and lives under beds and inside closets. REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker/Files

An aedes aegypti mosquito is seen inside Oxitec laboratory in Campinas, Brazil, February 2, 2016. Health experts are bracing for Zika virus to spread to the United States by April or May, borne by a mosquito that craves human blood, feeds during the day and lives under beds and inside closets. REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker/Files

Published Feb 4, 2016

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Lima - A hemisphere-wide outbreak of the Zika vírus prompted authorities in Peru to fumigate the Mansiche soccer stadium ahead of Cesar Vallejo's Copa Libertadores match against Sao Paulo on Wednesday.

Sao Paulo's team doctor was also questioned about his players' health when the Brazilian squad entered the Andean nation the day before the game, which ended 1-1.

Officials across Latin America are battling the disease, which is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, and authorities have launched campaigns to eradicate the larvae that gather in standing water.

The outbreak is now affecting at least 25 countries and territories, most of them in Latin America and the Caribbean, and could infect up to 4 million people in the Americas, according to the World Health Organization.

Peru registered its first case last week and thousands more have been reported in Brazil.

The second leg of the tie takes place next Wednesday in Sao Paulo, with the winner moving on to the group stages.

Reuters

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