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Bed bug outbreak at senior housing building under control

Jan 21, 2017 | 1:00 PM

A bed bug issue at a local senior housing building is under control several weeks after the first outbreak.

The Valleyview Towers Two building, owned by the North Battleford Housing Authority (NBHA), was first introduced to a fairly difficult bed bug problem before Christmas.

One of the buildings residents said that one case, believed to have been started on the fifth floor, spread out to affect multiple other suites in the building.

Dianne Baird, executive director of the housing network with the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation, which manages the NBHA and owns the building, said there were four cases of initial bed bug treatments at the building in December 2016, and five cases of retreatment.

“It is concerning and they need to get on to it, but in terms of units that they manage, this isn’t very many units,” she said.

The NBHA manages over 600 units.

In the year of 2016, the NBHA arranged pest control to manage bed bugs on a multitude of occasions. Thirty-four units received a first treatment, 25 units received a second treatment, four units received a third and one received a fourth.

Baird said out that some suites may receive treatment even if there are no clear signs of bed bugs.

“The process that occurs with bed bugs is that they are walking little creatures and they can move from one suite to another,” Barid said. “So if they find that there are bed bugs in one suite, they may feel for precautionary reasons that they treat all adjacent suites.”

Bed bugs are bad enough, with their bites potentially turning into painful welts, but many of the residents at Valleyview Towers Two believed they would have to pay for their fumigations themselves. Baird said that this isn’t always the case.   

In their policy, tenants may be charged if they are deemed responsible.

“The policies regarding bed bugs, it is following the same policy as what we view as damage that is the result of a tenant’s activity. Housing authorities only charge back tenants where they can prove the treatment is a result of what the tenant did,” Barid said. “If the tenant’s action has resulted in damage, and the damage is bed bugs, they could be charged for treatment.”

In a statement to battlefordsNOW Housing Authority Manager Lorrieanne Frohlich said that incidents of bed bugs have increased significantly across North America, found in hotels, restaurants, theaters, and private homes, and unfortunately the housing authority is not exempt from the pests. 

“We understand that bed bug concerns are stressful and unpleasant for tenants,” the statement said. “While bed bugs do not spread disease to humans, and they do not pose a public health threat, we recognize the importance of quickly and effectively addressing any suspected issues.  That’s why we are currently working with our tenants on this immediate situation, along with improving education and awareness on how our tenants can work together with us to reduce the likelihood of further concerns in the properties we manage.”

The statement went on to say that they will be reminding tenants to contact the housing authority immediately if they think there’s a bed bug situation in their suite, and they will work with trained professionals to treat all situations.

“We ask that our tenants co-operate with these efforts to best ensure the treatment methods work.  This includes following recommendations after the treatment around how to prevent future issues,” it said.

Ron Harrison, director of technical services for Orkin Pest Control, said that bed bugs are a huge issue everyone needs to be cautious of. He agreed that bed bugs can’t impact your health in most cases or transfer disease, but they can have an impact on mental health.

“You find out you have bed bugs in your bed and of course that’s kind of a nightmare because what are you going to do and how quickly can you take care of it,” Harrison said. “So I think that’s where the havoc is, more of a mental stress and challenge to ensure that you no longer have bed bugs.”

Some of the easiest tells for bed bugs are black looking ink stains in places like the edges of your box spring or mattress.

“Throughout all of North America, it’s a nightmare,” he said. “I would say the incidents of bed bugs are in every state, every province in Canada and the United States. We just have to be very vigilant because it becomes a nightmare if you let that one or two turn into an infestation. The point is that they’re everywhere and in high numbers, so there’s just no question that everyone in North America needs to be cautious about bringing bed bugs home.”

 

Katherine Svenkeson is a reporter with battlefordsNOW. She can be reached at katherine.svenkeson@jpbg.ca or on Twitter @ksvenkeson