WITH summer now officially under way, people are being warned to take precautions against the annual influx of mosquitoes.

While June through August are the peak months for the biting insects, they are likely to find ideal breeding conditions in the hot and wet days forecast for this month, an official from the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention said yesterday.

“Though we can’t say for certain what will happen this year, we do know that getting rid of standing water is the best way to keep mosquito numbers down,” said Dr Leng Pei’en, director of the center’s vector control department.