LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) -- There has been at least one confirmed death in Arkansas due to the West Nile virus and according to the Centers for Disease Control, the U.S. is seeing the largest outbreak ever of the deadly disease carried by mosquitoes.

For many cities, including Little Rock, killing the insects that carry the disease is the only way they have found to really prevent it.

Five days a week in the late afternoon, Victor with the Little Rock Public Works Department begins his nearly six hour route spraying for a pesty and potentially dangerous little bug.

"There's been no rain. If there is no rain, there is no standing water so you don't have much in the way of mosquito breeding," says Warren Atkins, Solid Waste Services Manager for the city.

Atkins says this year's mosquito season is mild compared to years past and while only ten cases of the West Nile virus have been reported in the state so far, the requests to kill the insects that carry them are on the rise.

"I think with some of the activity in Texas and all the reports coming in and the recent situation here in Pulaski county, we're starting to see a few more calls," says Atkins.

"I hear them once in awhile and when I'm out here, I see them," says Richard Sanders, a resident of Plantation Drive.

Sanders has grown quite accustomed to the sound of Victor's truck, one of the reasons he believes there are so few mosquitoes in his neighborhood.

"There is no water around here except for the river right over there from us and we try to keep our grass all mowed real good, the whole neighborhood does and that helps a lot. Mosquitoes don't have as much place to hide," says Sanders.

But for the ones that stick around in Little Rock neighborhoods, trucks like Victor's are a welcome sight.

"I appreciate what's being done to hold the population of the mosquitoes down. Hopefully it will help," says Sanders.

The Little Rock Public Works Department starts spraying in late April and early May and will continue through mid to late November. They cover the whole city over a three week period and then start the routes over again but if you would like your particular street sprayed sooner, you can call 311 and request it.

There are some things you can do at home to prevent mosquitoes from invading like clearing your yards of any standing water, meaning bird feeders, flower pots or gutters.

Stagnant water is where they mosquitoes breed and to avoid being bitten, try to stay indoors during the dusk and dawn hours.