Bedbugs infest apartments
A few weeks after a bedbug problem came to light at the Washington County Housing Authority’s high-rise Crumrine Tower in Washington, tenants of another agency are being bugged by the same pesky insects.
The blood-sucking bedbugs appeared four to five weeks ago at the 42-unit Crest Avenue Apartments for low- and moderate-income residents in Charleroi, which is part of the Washington County Redevelopment Authority. A tenant unwittingly brought infested, used upholstered furniture into the building, and bedbugs were then found in two apartments four to five weeks ago, said Jim Hott, senior housing director for the redevelopment authority.
The infestation escalated to four apartments, and it has since been narrowed to two, Hott said Thursday afternoon.
The redevelopment authority has a contract with Ehrlich Pest Control.
“Three sprays typically get rid of them,” Hott said. The apartments were treated in late November, and the next treatment is scheduled for Monday.
The redevelopment authority also plans an informational meeting with brochures for tenants at 2 p.m. Tuesday.
The three-story Crest Avenue Apartments, a former school building, has housed tenants aged 55 and older since 1996.
“Bedbugs don’t care about dirt,” Hott said. They emerge, usually at night, to feed on humans and warm-blooded animals
“It’s a beautiful facility,” Hott said, with sizeable one-bedroom units, adding about the insect problem, “When you own property, sometimes that happens.”
Denise Donovan of Rye, N.Y., who bills herself as a resource on the topic, wrote a book, “Think Like a Bed Bug.” In an email message to the Observer-Reporter, she wrote, “Bedbug management takes a lot of hard work and vigilance from both the consumer and the pest-control industry. Early detection plays a significant role, as without educated and informed consumers, control cannot be easily achieved.”
Bedbug treatments are continuing at Crumrine Towers, according to Washington County Housing Authority.