Warmth and sunshine have returned to the Northwest. But summer mosquitoes are about to return, too.

Prime conditions -- ample food, water, and sunlight -- will help them multiply.

Crews are trying to stop them in their tracks.

David Turner works with Multnomah County Vector Control, the agency responsible for controlling the mosquito population. He was out in the field Tuesday helping crews load a helicopter with an environmentally-friendly larvaecide.

“This product is designed to just surgically remove the mosquito larvae...And leave everything else behind,” said Turner.

(File photo)

They’re spraying that product from the air, trying to stop the mosquitoes in their tracks.

Before a mosquito can ever fly, bite you, and possibly spread disease, it starts off as a larva. So counties across our region are doing everything they can to get the insects before they grow.

But they can't get them all.

People out and about in Kelly Point Park were trying to enjoy the outdoors -- but struggling to cope with all the insects.

“It's tough to do anything out here without getting eaten alive,” said one park visitor. His son echoed that sentiment.

“Yeah, they're really itchy, too.”

You can help keep the mosquitoes away by getting rid of standing water in your yard. That’s because the insects grow in that standing water. If you get rid of it, you get rid of the mosquitoes.

Multnomah County says it’s critical to our region’s health.

“It's important from the standpoint of disease prevention ... and it's equally important from the standpoint of nuisance, and just being able to enjoy the outdoors,” said Turner.