shades...mosquitoes are on the rise in Bermuda.

Ms Gil Outerbridge told The Royal Gazette she and some friends were "attacked'' by mosquitoes on Tuesday morning as they walked along Kindley Field Road in St. George's.

As they approached the Swing Bridge, Ms Outerbridge said: "We were attacked by very large ferocious mosquitoes. We stood there swatting each other, until we could not take it anymore and just ran.

"The last time I've had lumps come up on me like these was in Tortolla.'' Ms Outerbridge said when she contacted the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries she was told they had received many reports about mosquitoes.

She said she understood that the mosquitoes were coming from open drains from the former US Navy Base.

When contacted senior plant officer at Agriculture and Fisheries Dr. Jeffrey Jones said: "We are aware of a mosquito problem. We have had several calls. I have contacted the Health Department on the matters. I know they have gone out and looked at some of the areas we discussed.'' And the Health Department's ditch foreman Mr. Graham Vanderpool said they were dealing with the problem.

"They (mosquitoes) are coming from various pockets of the base,'' he said.

"We've found that most of it is because the water is standing. On one or two occasions we've fogged the area and that seemed to work.''