The swarms of mosquitoes spawned by warm weather and the floodwaters of the Little Calumet River will be more the blood-sucking nuisance than the disease-carrying kind.

"We've had areas under water we haven't seen in 20 years," said Douglas Wright, of the South Cook County Mosquito Abatement District in Harvey. "The flooding here and across the state line has produced massive breeding sites."

The good news is the outbreak will be of Aedes Vexans, which are pesky, aggressive biters that breed in dry areas and can hatch within a week in flood runoff waters.

Flooding often reduces the population of the Culex mosquito because the water flushes them away. Culex is a carrier of West Nile virus and thrives in areas such as containers, sewers and catch basins during hot weather.

Dip counts for Vexans are extremely high and warm weather is mosquito heaven.

"This next week when residents are working in their yards or cleaning up from the flood they are going to be a nuisance," Wright said.

"If the weather stays warm for the next two to three weeks we're going to have an adult mosquito problem. I'll be looking for a record number of complaints."

Nick Doffin, of the Lake County Health Department, said Lake County's mosquito control program was set up to combat disease vectors and does not take measures to reduce nuisance varieties. Programs in Porter County are managed by each municipality.

Right now there's no evidence of higher than normal numbers of Culex and, in fact, he has had no reports of West Nile so far this season, Doffin said. It's helpful autumn is here and the first frost typically occurs the second week of October, Wright added.

Tom Turpin, a Purdue University entomologist, said cooler nights and shorter days disrupt the reproductive cycle. Spring floods are more likely to cause an increase in insect population.

"If you have breeding sites early in the year, there's a greater chance you'll see the population build," he added.

Turpin said flooding could possibly be a boom for insects such as fungus gnats, which thrive in moist environments, or flies that feed on decaying matter of plant or animal origin.

"It depends on what happens in the flood," he said. "If there are dead carcasses, then you might have flies and maggots, and if there's dead vegetation, rotting human or animal food then gnats will exploit that habitat and they cycle very quickly.

"But a flood per se is not going to result in an increase in insects - and generally, there's not a health problem. It's more of a nuisance."

Damp wood is more suited for termites to feed on, but their numbers would not necessarily increase from a temporary wetting caused by floodwaters, he added.

Timely cleanup and recovery efforts go a long way.

"Garbage is a potential site for insects," he said. "If there were cockroaches out there, they would be doing well. Getting rid of debris quickly will help eliminate problems."

Wet conditions will exacerbate allergies, added James Howell, Indiana State epidemiologist. Damp homes and businesses are fertile grounds for mold growth, which can cause allergic reactions and asthmatic symptoms in sensitive people.

Walls can soak up water far above the flood line and mold can be hidden under wallpaper, carpet and floorboards and in ceiling tiles, furniture and clothing.

Munster allergist Sanjay Patel expects to see an increase in patients complaining of shortness of breath, nasal congestion, runny nose and sinusitis. Molds also release volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, which are a waste product of fungus.

They sometimes produce a musty odor and have been associated with but not proven to cause sick building syndrome, which causes headache and fatigue in some occupants.