Warning: Bedbugs Have Moved Outside the Bedroom
by Bill Cowley
Bedbug infestations have reached a crisis level in the tri-state area. Virtually any place is now at risk. At one time, bedbug infestations were mostly confined to multi-unit dwellings especially apartment buildings, nursing homes, and motels. This is no longer the case. Infestations are popping up everywhere: Broadway theaters, judges’ chambers, health clubs, churches, community centers, hospitals, airports, libraries, supermarkets, retail stores, and movie theaters. Based on recent news reports, it seems that the only place guaranteed to be bedbug–free is the Hubble Space Telescope.
Why is this happening? People living in residences infected by bedbugs aren’t quarantined. They continue with their lives while attempting to get rid of their infestation at home. They travel on public transportation and go to work, school, shopping centers, restaurants, and movie theaters. Just like everyone else, they use laundry facilities and drop off their clothes off at the neighborhood dry cleaners.
It is natural that bedbugs, as parasites, want to tag along with their hosts. Those with bedbug infestations are often unintentionally walking around with a few bedbugs. The bedbugs travel in their pocketbooks, gym bags, and on clothes. The bugs then crawl around wherever the person happens to be. Office desks. Theater seats. Taxi cabs. You name it. If you happen to sit near someone with bedbugs or have your belongings touch theirs, it is like a game of tag. You may well find yourself with a bedbug attached to you, your briefcase or pocketbook. You inadvertently bring them into the house and now you are the next bedbug victim.
Commuters and travelers are finding out the hard way that there is an increase in the number of bedbugs sharing our trains, buses, subways, airplanes, boats, taxis, and even cruise ships—basically any form of transportation where there is a high turnover. When people and their belongings are cramped into small areas like airplanes, subways, and rush hour commuter trains, the potential for a bedbug to find a new host increases. And these hitchhikers are tough to spot. Bedbugs thrive in small spaces and can readily hide in the creases of seats and even inside airplane seatbelt buckles.
Delays at airports make matters worse. People are forced to sit in cramped seats at the gate, often taking personal items out of their bags. The bedbugs crawl out and attach onto someone else. Once on the plane, baggage areas could be renamed “bedbug transfer containers.” The overhead bins where passenger carry-on luggage and coats and jackets are jammed and intermingled together as well as checked-in package where infected and non-infected luggage are haphazardly shipped side by side allow bedbugs to jump to new hosts with no effort.
The short turn-around times for planes and other forms of transport means they are not inspected and cleaned as thoroughly as they should be. Ideally, there should be a good vacuuming around the back of seats and in the creases of seats where there is turnover in seats such as movie theater and airline seats. And we all know that just doesn’t happen. We just cross our fingers and hope that the person in the seat before us did not leave anything that crawls behind.
In the tri-state area, numerous movie theaters were found to have bedbug infestations giving the phrase “dinner and a bite” a whole new meaning. With those cushy theater seats in movie theaters, you are sitting in one spot for two hours, perfectly still in the dark, more than enough time for a bedbug feeding. For a bedbug, a movie theater is like a multi-course dinner, with a new entree at every showing.
As far as commercial buildings and public spaces we are seeing more and more reports of infestations. Bedbugs were found in a patient’s bedroom and staff areas of Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in Parsippany. An Abercrombie & Fitch clothing store in the South Street Seaport and the Epic Hollister flagship store in SoHo had to close its doors because of bedbug infestations. Fox News’ New York City offices were infested with bedbugs. It was determined that an employee’s home had a severe infestation. CBS’ NYC offices and Goldman Sachs in their offices in Jersey City reportedly had bedbug infestations.
For parents with children in school or college, there should be a level of vigilance in checking clothing. And it is not just the well-known bedbug risk from living in dormitories. The John Jay College of Criminal Justice in NYC had to close their building due to bedbugs. Here in New Jersey, an infested student brought bedbugs into Langtree Elementary School in Hamilton.
Although bedbugs are on the rise, you can’t stop living. The key is to be vigilant. Check used items before bringing them into your home including rental and vintage furniture, antiques, library books, and clothing and used appliances from thrift or consignment shops. Never pick up used mattresses or furniture left curbside. They were probably left there for a reason. Be aware of your surroundings and get in the habit of doing quick inspections. Check your luggage and clothing after a flight. Before sitting in a movie or airplane seat, check the creases. If you took crowded public transportation, give yourself and belongings a quick check. You can’t totally eliminate the possibility of bringing bedbugs into your home, but you can certainly reduce it. Finally, should you find a bedbug in your home despite your best efforts, don’t waste any time. Contact bed bug exterminators in NJ right away. With bedbug infestations, every day counts.
Cowleys Termite & Pest Services was founded in October 1991 and has been helping homeowners deal with a full range of pest infestations.
You can read more about us and about our company history. See why you should choose Cowley's. We offer customers help with residential pest control, commercial pest control, residential termite management, and offer other additional services. We help customers exterminate bed bugs, termites, wood destroying insects, beetles, carpenter bees, ants, rodents, ticks, stinkbugs, and offer bird control and nuisance wildlife services.
