by Arrianee LeBeau

WVEC.com

Posted on February 27, 2012 at 2:49 PM

Updated yesterday at 5:22 PM

HAMPTON — A Hampton mother is outraged by the way her son’s school has handled an infestation of bed bugs.

Crystal Sellman says the administration at Tucker-Capps Elementary failed to notify her that her son may have been exposed to the insects two weeks ago.  Twice in one week, bed bugs were found in two separate classrooms recently.

Now she says her son is having health problems as a result, and the school won’t allow her son to change to another class.

After the bugs were discovered in a classroom at T-C two weeks ago, the school sent home a letter to some parents, but Sellman says she didn’t receive any notice until the following week. 

Sellman says her son has been to the doctor twice, and the doctor confirmed that the child was having an allergic reaction either to the bites or to chemicals that were used to treat bed bug areas.

“I kept him home and that was Thursday, and he was fine Thursday.  As soon as he entered back into the building and class, he had evidence of more marks on him,” explained Sellman.

Last week, when she asked the principal to switch her son’s class, her request was denied.

“I am afraid that there will be repercussions that my two children will have to face after me making such a fuss, but like any parent that’s concerned, I feel like they would be in my same seat,”  added Sellman.

Classrooms at Tucker Capps were treated for bed bugs onSaturday, Feb. 18th.  School officials said on Monday that thebugs haven’t been seen in the school since the treatment.

The school says contractors treated classrooms, offices, the library, cafeteria, and other areas using Diatomaceous Earth in powder form, and Zeprion and Bedalin in concentrated sprays.

They focused on cracks, crevices, wall injections, floor edges, carpets, and all desks.

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Hampton mother outraged at school's handling of bed bug infestation

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – A young couple found bed bugs in their apartment and they wanted help from their apartment complex to pay for the $850 treatment to get rid of the pesky problem.

FOX 4 has learned the Retreat of Shawnee apartments will treat the couple’s unit and all the other units in the building free of charge.  Management says after talking to their exterminator they decided it would be best to be proactive.

Shane Hicks moved into the Retreat of Shawnee in May of 2011.  His wife, Michelle Hicks, joined him four months later.

“We noticed some marks on my wife’s arm that looked like mosquito bites,” said Shane Hicks.

At first Michelle thought it was a rash caused by a switch in laundry detergent.  But then she realized it was caused by bed bugs.

The couple says they contacted apartment management and an inspector came out to look at the problem.  The couple says they got rid of their bed, bedding, headboard and box spring after the inspector found bed bugs and eggs.  Then the Hicks say the inspector came back and told them that everything looked good.

Then, a short time later, the Hicks say the bed bugs were back.  They don’t know if they brought the bed bugs into the apartment or if they were already there when they moved into the apartment.  But they hope that a contract, called the Bed Bug Addendum, is changed for future renters.

” They expected us within that addendum to enter into the apartment, and in entering into the apartment, to identify whether or not you see bed bugs,” Michelle Hicks said.  “As if they would just be crawling across the walls.”

“ Bed bugs are tiny creatures that lay even tinier eggs,” said Shane Hicks. “You can’t come into an apartment and say, hey I see a bed bug.”

The Hicks hope the Bed Bug Addendum will change to have an inspection done by a professional before renters move into the apartment complex.

Again, apartment management decided to pay for all of the units in the Hicks’ building to be treated for bed bugs free of charge.

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Complex Will Pay to Treat Bed Bug Problem

Be careful what you bring home in your suitcase. These days, you might unpack a tiny vampire. Bed bugs are back! And they feed on human blood.

Bed bugs have been with us for many thousands of years, since humans lived in caves. By the early 1940s, they were mostly eradicated from the developed world, thanks to strong pesticides that also killed ants and cockroaches. But today, fewer pesticides are in use. And people travel more.

And so bed bugs have returned. They have invaded houses, hotels, nursing homes, dorm rooms, and even offices and movie theaters.

They are tough. They can survive a wide range of temperatures. They don’t mind if it’s hot, or dry. If it gets too cold, they can go into a state of semi-hibernation. They can survive a year without eating. And thousands of bed bugs can infest a single bedroom.

These insect parasites like couches, cushions and especially beds. They hide in tiny crevices in mattress seams, or behind electric sockets. Bed bugs are active mainly at night, when they can feed on you without your noticing. They sense your breath as you sleep. They use heat sensors on their antennas to you’re your exposed skin – an ankle or an arm. Then they stab their long beaks into your skin and suck out your blood. Bed bugs become engorged with their blood meal.

If you find yourself with itchy red bumps, welts or a rash, bed bugs could be the reason. How can you know for sure? The first thing is … look for the bugs. They are small – about as big as an apple seed. They’re flat and oval-shaped – usually reddish-brown or sometimes a lighter straw color. They have visible antennas and cone-like eyes.

Also, look for the shed skins from the insects on your sheets – or stains on your sheets. To eradicate bed bugs from your home, you need an exterminator.

The best way not to get bed bugs? Learn to recognize the signs. The bugs themselves. The stained sheets. In a place that’s seriously infested with bed bugs, you might even notice a sweet, musty smell in a room – emitted by the insects’ scent glands. They’re said to smell like rotten raspberries.

If you see any signs of bed bugs, close your suitcase … and check out!

For more help and to solve specific problems with these bugs, go to a library or the Internet for more ideas on how to get rid of bed bugs in your house – and help stay free of the bugs when you travel.

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Bed bugs are back

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) – Is a Kalamazoo senior apartment complex infested by bed bugs?

A family contacted Newschannel 3, saying their loved one is surrounded by bed bugs and they want management to fix the issue.

Kalamazoo has seen a number of bed bug incidents, apartment complexes and hotels have had to do battle with the pests in the last few years, now one family says they've shown up at a large senior apartment building.

There are more than 100 apartments, and mostly seniors living in the Northwind Complex. One of them is Jenny Smith's 86-year-old father.

“He told me something was biting him,” said Jenny Smith, “I didn't know what it was.”

So, Smith says she went to her father's room to check it out and was stunned by what she saw all around his bed.

“I went in his bedroom, pulled the sheet back and bed bugs were jumping all over the bed,” said Smith.

Smith took pictures, which appear to show clusters of bed bugs. Now she wants to know how management will fix the alleged infestation before it spreads.

When Newschannel 3 went to talk to management they refused to tell us anything and told us to leave.

Bob Bushouse of G&L Distributing sells products to help landlords and businesses get rid of bed bugs. He says it's still a major problem in Kalamazoo and that the key is to catch it early.

“No, it has not calmed down,” said Bushouse. “That's the problem. I see people who let it get out of control, then it's much harder to get rid of it, if you catch it early, it's pretty easy.”

Bushouse says he is getting calls every day from people trying to get rid of bed bugs.

Jenny Smith says she is concerned, not only about her dad, but everyone else in his building.

“Not just move my dad, they need to come and do the whole building, if it's in his apartment, it's in other apartments,” said Smith.

Smith says that on Friday afternoon management did some chemical spraying in her father's apartment, but she remains concerned that the problem may be throughout the building.

According to the city community planning and development office, the complex is overdue for an inspection, but has been given an extension. It says it will investigate if the Smiths file a formal complaint.

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Family worries about possible bed bug infestation

Written by The Huntington Herald
Thursday, 23 February 2012 11:54

A costly bill being raised for public hearing in the legislature's Housing Committee would permit a landlord to force their tenants to pay for all the expenses submitted by an exterminator to rid an apartment of bed bugs according to State Rep. Larry Miller, representing Shelton and Stratford.

The legislation proposed is called “An Act Concerning The Rights And Responsibilities Of Landlord And Tenants Regarding Bed Bug Infestation,” according to a release from the state House Republicans.

It would require landlords to notify tenants “fully and accurately” of his experience with bed bugs on his property. The tenant must then provide the landlord, in writing, any experience he may have had in previous rental units. If the landlord finds bed bugs in the tenant's apartment, the landlord could force the tenant to pay for all cost submitted by the exterminator to rid the apartment of these insects.

Bedbugs are not dangerous but some individuals may have an allergic reaction to their bite. These insects are about 1/8 to 3/8 long, can go as much as 60 days without a blood meal, and usually die within a year. The female bed bug lays 3 to 5 eggs per day. They require 5 to 10 days to digest their blood meal. These insects can be found in nursing homes, trains, movie theaters, and scores of other locations. They are usually nocturnal and because they are so thin are able to hide behind wallpaper. These bugs can travel 100-feet per night in search of a meal. However, usually, they stay about 8 feet from their hiding place.

“Connecticut real estate remains dismal, yet rental units are in high demand,” Miller said. “This bill gives the landlord the opportunity to blame a tenant for a bed bug infestation even though they might have not brought the bugs into the building. It may take the exterminators more than one treatment to kill these bugs and the costs are high. It is difficult or impossible to assign responsibility because our population is so transient.”

Miller said the bill will negatively affect rental agents, may increase costs for tenants, and could increase litigation.

“Landlords should not be able to assign costs to tenants when it might be the landlord's visitors that brought the bug in,” Miller said. “What's next, going after a tenant for ants in the building or wood boring bees?”

Currently there has been resurgence in the population of bed bugs in the country, especially in the Northeast.

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Rep. Miller opposes 'bed bug' bill

Columbus firefighters said that bed bugs are creeping into medic vehicles, 10TV's Maureen Kocot reported on Thursday.

Union officials representing Columbus firefighters said that they were growing more concerned about the potential for a full-blown infestation.

“We could potentially be passing bed bugs on from one patient to the next,” International Association of Firefighters Local 67 union president Jack Reall said.

Reall said that firefighters also were concerned about transferring the bugs to their homes.

“If that truck's infested, there's a potential for us to walk out of the truck, into somebody's house, into a fire station, into a business, and carry bed bugs with us,” Reall said.

The Division of Fire's current EMS bed bug protocol does not go far enough, Reall said.

Columbus Division of Fire Chief Kevin Reardon said that the department was in the process of developing a more comprehensive bed bug strategy to protect the city's 1,600 firefighters and 34 fire stations.

Columbus fire currently has a plan in place to dry firefighters' uniforms in high heat if they believe they have been exposed to bed bugs, Kocot reported.

“We've got to take some time to do it right the first time and come up with a policy that's doable, and it's not going to happen overnight,” Reardon said.

Reall said that time is of the essence when it comes to developing a working plan.

“Tell you the truth, I'm completely surprised we have not infested a fire station yet,” Reall said.

Watch 10TV News and refresh 10TV.com for more information.

©2012 by 10TV.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Firefighters Say Bed Bugs Now Appearing Inside Medic Vehicles

Posted:Today
Updated: 1:00 AM
Official says bugs may have crawled into spaces where the spray didn’t penetrate.

MARK GUYDISH mguydish@timesleader.com

WILKES-BARRE – GAR High School apparently became home to two commando bed bugs with acute survival skills.

Wilkes-Barre Area School District Superintendent Jeff Namey said the bugs were discovered Tuesday in a science lab that had been sprayed for bed bugs over the weekend.

The theory is the bugs managed to crawl into spaces behind a panel in the lab, and the spray didn’t penetrate their newfound hideout.

“They will pull one of the panels off and spray again,” Namey said.

Spraying was done over the weekend after two bed bugs were found in the school last week, one on a student’s clothing and another on a book.

GAR is the second school in the district to have discovered bed bugs in classrooms. A bed bug was found on the floor of a classroom at Kistler Elementary School about three weeks ago.

The district called in experts who sprayed that room and nearby ones as a precaution. Namey said the bugs are brought in on clothing or books by students.

The bugs are parasites that feed on human blood and are frequently found in mattresses.

They travel in clothing and luggage – including school books – and can be difficult to exterminate if allowed to settle into a home, a fact that has prompted concern among parents at both Kistler and GAR after the bugs were found.

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2 bed bugs found after GAR sprays

CHATTANOOGA, TN (WRCB) — The Chattanooga City Council is considering paying $30,000 to rid a city owned property of bed bugs. Dogwood Manor Apartments offers affordable housing for seniors, but bed bugs have been a continuing problem.

The city brought in an exterminator last October and has had routine inspections since, but residents say they're back. It's up to council to determine if it wants to spend $30,000 on Terminix in an attempt to get rid of the problem once and for all.

“The little boogers don't like to go away, but they can be made to go away so I'd like to see that,” Dogwood Manor resident Ray Hamilton said.

Ray Hamilton has been battling bed bugs in his Dogwood Manor apartment for the last year. He's been hopeful after every visit from exterminators.

“Every now and then you think I haven't seen any in a while and then bang you'll see one,” Hamilton said.

The Chattanooga Housing Authority manages the 136 unit property, but it's owned by the city, so it's up to council to decide if sinking the money into an in-depth treatment of the building is worth it.

“There is a history there and the reality is you sometimes have to go back and double, triple make sure that it's taken care of,” District 8 City Councilman Andrae McGary said.

“$30,000 is a lot of money but at the same time, it's an irritating situation and I would like to see it gone for good,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton says he likes living here, and it's a clean place, but he doesn't like the problems that come with the bed bugs.

“It's the itching and the irritation that it causes,” Hamilton said.

“The City of Chattanooga of course is looking forward to making sure it's a problem that doesn't keep re-occurring and hopefully that will be the case after the next treatment,” McGary said.

“I'd give the city a big pat on the back for doing it personally,” Hamilton said.

City council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday to vote. If approved, it would be an annual contract with Terminix for inspection and service. The $30,000 would come from the Dogwood Manor Operating Fund.

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Bed bugs plaguing city-owned Dogwood Manor

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VIDEO: Firm expects Olympic bed bug boom

Posted:Today
Updated: 12:50 AM
Two of the pests were found. Kistler Elementary was treated after one bug was discovered there.

By MARK GUYDISH mguydish@timesleader.com

WILKES-BARRE – Wilkes-Barre Area School District expects to treat several rooms in GAR High School this weekend after the discovery of two bed bugs earlier in the week.

“A couple of bed bugs were found at GAR,” Superintendent Jeff Namey said. “What happens is they come in on people’s clothing; I think one was found on a book.”

Two bugs were found in one room on the same day, Namey said. The room was visually inspected and no other bugs were found, but as a precaution the district planned to get professionals to come in and spray the room this weekend.

The discovery came less than three weeks after a bed bug was discovered in a Kistler Elementary School room. At that time, Namey said the district called in an exterminator and had the room and four others sprayed for bugs. Dogs trained to sniff out bed bugs were then brought in and no other bugs were detected.

The incident prompted numerous comments from parents, one of whom spoke at the school board’s Feb. 8 meeting, questioning whether enough had been done. At the time, Namey stressed the district followed the advice of the professional exterminator.

There was no school Friday because it was a teacher in-service day. Namey said letters have been sent home to all parents explaining the situation at GAR and what the district is doing about it.

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Some GAR rooms to be treated for bed bugs