First U.S.-based Zika infections confirmed in Florida

“Only time will tell” if the contamination zone in Northern Miami, which now has more than a dozen confirmed cases of the Zika virus, will spread, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC issued a warning to pregnant women to avoid unnecessary travel to the area of Miami.

“We have never seen a mosquito-borne illness that could cause a birth defect and right now there is this specific area north of downtown Miami where Zika is spreading in that community,” CDC Director Tom Frieden said on “GMA” this morning. “We’re advising pregnant women not to go there and pregnant women who have to live or work there to do everything possible to prevent mosquito bites.”

Fourteen cases of Zika virus infections have been reported in northern Miami since Friday, leading to fears of a growing outbreak of the disease, according to government officials. The recent developments have called into question why officials didn’t issued an advisory sooner.