By The Good Doctor
I still remember my first encounter with one of these trucks of death. I was walking near Xinjiekou when everybody suddenly scrambled into the nearest shop. I couldn’t figure out what was happening until I saw what looked like a firetruck watering the trees. Everyone else knew what I was about to learn: whatever chemical they were spraying, it doesn’t discriminate between mosquito and man.
The fact that they are still using these truck more than a decade later baffles me. It certainly hasn’t stopped me from waking up several nights a week during the summer with mosquito bites. My only conclusion is (warning: unsubstantiated opinion coming up) the city maintains these outdated public works in order to keep people employed. It’s probably the same reason they water the streets during a rainstorm. Youku video for those in China after the jump.
Has pretty much nothing to do with mosquitoes and everything to do with the insects that would otherwise be up in the trees.
I always find that they do this stuff at the wrong time. The street sweepers on 4th ring road at noon and 6 pm. This bug sprayer can’t spray at 2am? Come on!
Bug sprayers are people too. Why should they have to work night shift?