Alan Gomez

USA TODAY

MIAMI — Federal and state health officials announced Tuesday that the Zika virus is no longer being locally transmitted in a large section of Miami Beach.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott visited the barrier island to celebrate the announcement, which comes after a difficult summer where three different sections of South Florida were designated as Zika zones. That move prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue travel warnings to pregnant women over the mosquito-borne virus that can cause birth defects, creating major headaches for business owners and residents dependent on tourism.

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On Tuesday, the Florida Department of Health and the CDC declared a three-mile section of Miami Beach was no longer experiencing local Zika transmission, meaning nobody has acquired the virus there in 45 days.

"I am proud to announce that three miles of the impacted area in Miami Beach have now been cleared of any ongoing active transmission of the Zika virus," he said.

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Zika became a nightmare for Miami when the city earned the dubious distinction of the first in the U.S. to experience active transmission of the virus, which can cause devastating birth defects in babies born to women infected while pregnant. The virus, which originated in Brazil, has been detected in people in 49 U.S. states, but the vast majority contracted it through travel to Zika-infected areas.

South Florida is the first U.S. state where the virus spread locally by mosquitoes. A total of 236 people have contracted the virus in the region, mostly in three Miami neighborhoods.

"We understand this has been a difficult time for Miami Beach residents and tourists and thank local and state officials for their hard work to interrupt the spread of the virus in the area," CDC Director Tom Frieden said.

The response to the disease included intense mosquito control efforts, using handheld foggers and aerial spraying to kill the aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits the virus. Those efforts were successful in Wynwood, the artists' enclave that was the first neighborhood hit by Zika. Officials cleared that neighborhood in September after weeks of spraying and other prevention efforts.

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Two Zika areas remain in South Florida. One is a section of northern Miami known as Little River, and the other is the southern tip of Miami Beach. Scott and Frieden both said they were happy with Tuesday's news, but urged residents and tourists alike to continue bracing themselves against the virus.

"People living in or visiting Miami-Dade County, including Miami Beach, particularly pregnant women, are still encouraged to continue to take steps to prevent mosquito bites and to follow guidelines for preventing sexual transmission," Frieden said. "We cannot let down our guard."