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Bed bug “luau” on the Camino to Santiago

nobugsonme — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 06:02:40 +0000

The bed bugs are still biting Pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. We last posted about bed bugs on the popular Spanish pilgrimage route exactly a year ago. There was so much bed bug trouble in various lodgings on the road to Santiago that the government was planning to close its own hostels for pilgrims for 15 days last winter to try and get rid of bed bugs on the route.

Of course, when pilgrims come from around the world, it is inevitable that bed bugs will be continually reintroduced. And since summer is the most popular time for people to travel the Camino, it’s no surprise there is a lot of chatter about bed bugs among Camino bloggers and discussion board participants.

Yesterday, pilgrim and blogger Lisa Fullam offered a humorous perspective on being bitten in a hotel she and a companion stayed at in Burgos:

I lay in bed not sleeping. Was it the very tasty chocolate we’d had after dinner? Or was it the itching? I itched idly, thinking I’d perhaps encountered a hungry mosquito on the road. Then I noticed that I was itching in new places, which seemed unlikely if mosquitoes were the culprit. Then I heard…was it the sound of tiny drums? Then…a kind of festive chant, very soft and high-pitched, almost nasal. The drums increased in rhythm and urgency. It was eerie in the dark. I scratched again, and finally decided to turn on a light.

They were everywhere. Hundreds of them. Bedbugs, celebrating something very much like a luau, and the occasion of the feast was me. Some were dancing in little circles wearing ceremonial masks, doubtless thanking whoever their gods are for this more than generous feast. Others carried little torches as they scurried around accompanying the elderly or the lame to the party. (At least some looked elderly, being gray-haired and slightly hunched, if bedbugs can be described as hunched. The crutches identified the lame–even with 6 legs, sometimes life leaves one down a few legs, needing some help.) Others carried tiny bowls of…coleslaw? Potato salad? Jello? What are the side dishes of a bedbug luau?

[Emphasis mine.]

Sometimes humor is the only way to get through such an experience. Fullam notes that they will be washing all their belongings, and we hope they manage to enjoy the rest of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela without bed bug bites, and — most importantly — that they do not take them to subsequent destinations.

I know you’ll want to read the rest of this amusing entry on the Process of Pilgrimage blog.

Another recent report from the Camino: Tony, a hospitalero — or volunteer warden of one of the Camino’s refugios or albergues (simple hostels for pilgrims walking or cycling the pilgrimage routes) — blogs in a post entitled “Bed Bugs and Broomsticks” about the arrival of a pilgrim who had been exposed to bed bugs on the previous night in another refugio:

A lad from the Czech Republic arrived yesterday afternoon. He was covered in bedbug bites: all down his legs and over his back. He thought he got them in León. What a mess!

Well, being the sort of hospitaleros we are, we agreed to let him stay. Since Anne is a trained nurse, she took charge, with Peter’s help. All of his clothes went in the washer at a high temperature and everything else was sprayed within an inch of its life.

Initially, we said he could sleep in the garden, but relented and let him sleep on the floor of the library. I gave his some antihistamine because it looked as if he was having an allergic reaction. That ensured he had a good night’s sleep!

He was a really nice lad and extremely grateful; many places would have told him to go away, or, what’s worse, let him stay and propagate the pest even further. Hopefully, he’s all clear now.

It is wonderful that the volunteers who staff these accommodations are becoming educated about bed bugs and how to prevent their spread.

Education is, of course, our most important weapon against bed bugs.Similar Posts:

Residents sue motel on Staten Island due to bed bugs

nobugsonme — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:58:45 +0000

Edward Reed and Juanise Rayford are among eleven residents who are suing the Midland Motor Inn, a motel on Staten Island, because of bed bugs. Staten Island Live reports that

The couple are among 11 motel residents who have recently sued the building owner, 630 Midmot Corp., in state Supreme Court, St. George.

The plaintiffs, who seek unspecified monetary damages, contend they have been “severely” bitten and sickened by “unabated” bedbug infestation.

Several of them have been diagnosed with scabies, a contagious skin infection, said their lawyer, Alan D. Levine of Queens.

“It’s made it impossible for them to sleep,” said Levine. “Many of them have had multiple visits to doctors or hospitals.”

It is important to note that bed bugs do not cause scabies, which is an unrelated skin disease caused by the scabies mite which burrows under skin.

However, the article also details allegations of bed bug bites and the presence of bed bugs (with photos of samples). New York’s Housing and Preservation Department inspectors cited bed bug violations in one room in May and June.

Some residents placed by Project Hospitality are being relocated to city shelters.

See: Suit says bedbugs infest motel on Staten Island – SILive.com.

Update (9/4/2009):

The Midland Motor Inn still has bed bugs, according to a story Friday in the Staten Island Advance. Councilman James Oddo has vowed to continue exerting pressure on the motel owner to solve the problem, the SI Advance reports:

“I pledge to you that on behalf of the beleaguered Midland Beach community, who have endured a diminished quality of life because of your lack of concern, my office will remain vigilant in working with the city agencies to do all we can to inspect, enforce and compel your compliance with all rules and regulations,” Oddo said in a letter to Patel.

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Thriftlodge guest finds hypodermic needles while searching for bed bugs in hotel

nobugsonme — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 00:33:48 +0000

Wise travelers search their hotel rooms for bed bugs before settling in. (Our Travel FAQs are a good place to start learning how.)

However, it’s worth noting you may find things besides bed bugs lurking in the room.

Friday night Michigan resident Frank Escamilla rolled in to town to look into buying a house in cheerful Stumptown. He stayed at the most budget-conscious place he could find: the Thriftlodge on East Burnside and SE 9th.

“The whole building smelled like urine, especially in the rooms. It was pretty gross,” says Escamilla. Things quickly got worse. Just to play it safe, Escamilla decided to check under his mattress for signs of bedbugs. No bugs droppings in sight, but wedged between the two boxsprings supporting the mattresses he spotted a black plastic bag. Gingerly, Escamilla picked up the bag and dumped it out on the bedside table—out rolled a cotton swab and three hypodermic needles.

(Emphasis mine.)

Yikes! A helpful reminder to be cautious while doing your inspections!

The Thriftlodge claims to lift up the bed mattresses for inspections once every three months; they might want to re-think that one!

What’s the strangest thing you’ve found in a hotel room?

See Thriftlodge Guest Finds Three Needles Under Bed | Blogtown, PDX | Portland Mercury.Similar Posts:

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Bed Bug Barrier passive bed bug monitor wins ABC’s “The New Inventors” episode

nobugsonme — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 05:31:57 +0000

The Australian show “The New Inventors”(ABC) features several new inventions in an episode, with a panel of judges choosing the best of the lot.

Inventor Tony Abrahams won episode 16 (20 May 2009) with his passive bed bug monitor, the “Bed Bug Barrier,” which either attaches above the feet of the bed, or sits under the feet of the bed, trapping bed bugs attempting to crawl up onto the bed in a glue. (Based on the placement of the glue under the rim of the device, it is not clear to me whether bed bugs would also be intercepted if they tried to crawl off a bed, rather than onto it, as would be true with the Climbup TM Interceptor.)

There’s some iffy science here (for example, I don’t think anyone can prove the inventor’s claim that bed bugs cannot harbor on a mattress encasement). One judge is concerned that bed bugs brought onto a bed via a suitcase (rather than climbling up the bed leg) will not be hindered by this tool, and this judge is apparently correct. Bed bugs can live on beds. This device will not get rid of bed bugs living in the bed frame, on the mattress, or for that matter, on chairs or in other parts of the room.

This does not mean the trap is useless, but it does mean it is not a total solution. I would like to see independent test data demonstrating the effectiveness of any bed bug monitors. And I would like to know whether bed bugs are 100% trapped while entering or leaving a bed, since from what I can see, there’s some possibility bed bugs exiting a bed could drop down without crawling on the underside (glued) region of the trap.

Clearly, the passive bed bug monitor is an idea that is blooming in lots of different forms, and time (and independent peer reviewed research, we hope!) will tell which is best.

You can read about other currently available bed bug monitors such as the Climbup TM Interceptors — which provide a barrier for bed bugs climbing onto or off of beds — here, or read about David Cain’s soon-to-be-widely-available bbalert monitors — which provide a harborage for bed bugs somewhere on the bed frame itself — here and here.

I love that a bed bug-related product won this contest. Interestingly, Tony Abrahams got the idea for this product because he was in the business of renting out accommodations to travelers. His invention beat out a device which weighs beehives and some kind of portable refrigeration/food heating device.

Let’s face it: bed bugs in the popular media are always a good thing: one of the judges notes she will change her hotel room behaviors based on this presentation (presumably, she won’t be leaving luggage on the bed anymore!) If news about the problem of bed bugs reached many other Australians via this show, that in itself is a very good thing.

Click below to watch!

Thanks to Paula for the tip!Similar Posts:

Cincinnati woman encounters bed bugs in a suburban Chicago Sheraton

nobugsonme — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:49:30 +0000

The Chicago news media is all aflutter with the story of a Cincinnati woman who encountered bed bugs at an Arlington Heights, Illinois Sheraton.

The local health department says it’s the second complaint they’ve had this year (not sure if that’s at the Sheraton or in all of Arlington Heights). Ten rooms at this hotel are now undergoing treatment for bed bugs.

No one should have to put up with bed bugs in a hotel. On the other hand, remember that bed bugs can happen anywhere. The victim in this case comes from a city — Cincinnati — where one in six people claimed to have had bed bugs on a recent survey.

Finally, the Fox reporter’s advice to vacuum your suitcase and wash all your clothing after encountering bed bugs in a hotel is not enough. See this FAQ if you think you’ve been exposed to bed bugs, and if you haven’t, this one will tell you how to detect bed bugs in a hotel room before you spend the night.

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More on bed bugs in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: again with the HAZMAT showers?!?

nobugsonme — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 04:39:52 +0000

Remember last week, when the boardinghouse/SRO hotel above the Tara Station Bar in Harrisburg was found to be infested — apparently by bed bugs — but in the two stories covering the case, WHPTV (CBS Channel 21) reporters refused to say the phrase “bed bugs”, referring instead to “bugs” and “insects?”

This was so, even though the attached videos showed what clearly appeared to be bed bugs crawling on a ceiling (speckled with what appeared to be bed bug fecal stains) and also crawling on a man’s shirt, and even though the same man showed them “bug bites” he had sustained? (Note: if you have an itchy bite mark and a bed bug is crawling on your shirt in broad daylight, entertaining a video crew, it’s probably a pretty safe bet you have bed bug bites.)

(You can see those earlier videos from CBS Channel 21 here and here.)

Well, we kind of figured that story wasn’t over.

Today, WGAL reports that the building was shut down by city code inspectors:

Police and fire companies are looking into possible bed bugs at a Harrisburg hotel. The chief of police said it is not healthy for anyone to stay the night.

Four city code inspectors were inside a small hotel owned by Wali Rentals LLC on Fourth and Chestnut streets Wednesday afternoon after they received a complaint about a bed bug problem.

Officials also closed a restaurant on the first floor of the building as a precaution.

Chief Charles Kellar said the inspectors themselves were infested with the bugs during their investigation. They were sent to Harrisburg Hospital to be decontaminated.

“One had a cuff, and she undid the cuff of her pants, and a lot came out of there. One guy said it looked like the walls were moving,” said Kellar.

(Notice how WGAL is referring to “possible bed bugs.”)

The residents were removed from the building:

Tenants were ushered through a mobile Haz-Mat shower unit to be decontaminated.

They were then taken to a local shelter and given a new set of clothing.

This is the second time we’ve heard of a HAZMAT shower being used to decontaminate residents who were asked to leave a bed bug-infested building. The first was in Jersey City last summer.

When fleeing a building where a code inspector could come out with “a lot of bugs” in a pants cuff, evacuees should be allowed to shower and change to fresh clothing and shoes. Precautions do need to be taken to avoid moving bed bugs to vehicles or to the evacuees’ next location.

But consensus in the comments on the Jersey City post was that a HAZMAT decontamination shower was overkill.

The hotel is getting three “exterminator treatments” (let’s hope that is enough to get rid of bed bugs in the building).

And apparently, the owner Wali Mohmand is still blaming tenants’ hygiene for bed bugs:

“I’m not their maid, they have to clean after themselves,” said Mohmand.

Sounds like CBS 21 News, the city code inspectors, and Mr. Mohmand still have a bit to learn about how bed bugs operate. They can infest any home, clean or dirty, cluttered or empty.

Oh, but wait, I forgot: first, someone in Harrisburg needs to actually verify that the “possible bed bugs” are, in fact, bed bugs.

Is that really so difficult?!?Similar Posts:

Note to Tripadvisor.com: bed bugs can be found in clean hotels too!

nobugsonme — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 08:06:39 +0000

I love Tripadvisor.com. I always use it to choose hotels when I travel (and I am not just avoiding those with bed bug reports, either, but also looking for a room that’s convenient, reasonably-priced, and hopefully with a little something extra).

Tripadvisor also knows a thing or two about bed bugs in hotels; last year, they asked their members how many had encountered bed bugs in hotels, and 8% reported that they had. The same survey found 80% of Tripadvisor members surveyed were worried about encountering bed bugs in their travels. This is good news to us, since it means word is getting out about bed bugs. People need to be worried before they will take smart steps, like learning to search a hotel room for bed bugs (more on that below).

Today, Tripadvisor posted a list of the “Ten Dirtiest Hotels” in the United States.

I was surprised by the banner, which is a graphic of insects with red stripes scurrying across a bed, under a magnifying glass. The caption quotes “a Tripadvisor member” as saying, “I have 30 bites from bugs in room 319.”

I suspect we know what kinds of bug bites they’re talking about.

However, I am not sure what the pictured insects are (and I am sure some of my readers will tell me!) but they are not bed bugs.

Although it’s primarily a place to post reviews, and the “dirtiest hotels” list is presumably an outcome of user ratings, Tripadvisor could do better in terms of educating its readers about bed bugs and how to search for them.

It may be true that hotels with really obvious, visible bed bug infestations may also be neglecting other aspects of care (such as cleanliness). If you can see bed bugs everywhere, and the problem is not being addressed, it suggests something is going wrong in terms of cleaning, maintenance and general upkeep.

On the other hand, subtle, non-obvious, recently introduced bed bug infestations would not necessarily be seen during a visual inspection. The room could be carefully cleaned, and still have bed bugs present.

It’s really important to stress that all hotel rooms, not just dirty ones, are susceptible to bed bugs. This is because bed bugs travel on people’s clothing and in their bags and stuff. And so everyone who stays in hotels (or motels, dorms, hostels, borrowed rooms, and other temporary lodging) should inspect for bed bugs before settling in, no matter how nice or clean the room looks.

This FAQ tells you what you need to know about how to avoid bed bugs when you visit hotels. It includes links to resources which show you how to search for bed bugs. The New York State Integrated Pest Manegement (at Cornell) provides an excellent printable Travel Card on this topic (click for a PDF) which you can carry with you to hotels to help you remember how to search the room, and what bed bugs look like (note: the same PDF includes cards with general bed bug information, and one for college students).

It’s important that people understand that bed bugs do not have anything to do with a lack of hygiene. Dirty environments and clutter certainly mask the problem, but do not cause or attract bed bugs to a space.

(Oh, and don’t worry — I promise to post more about the Hearing yesterday, soon.)

Update: thanks to bug_girl and , we can confirm the pictured insect appears to be Graphosoma lineatum, or Striped Stink Bug.

Bug_girl writes in the comments below,

It is indeed the Striped Stink bug.

In fact, as someone pointed out:
“Note that bed bugs are not only in a separate Family, but in a separate infraorder (family Cimicidae [bed bugs] is in the infraorder Cimicomorpha, family Pentatomidae [stink bugs], including the pictured species, is in the infraorder Pentatomomorpha).”

Double wrong

As bug_girl notes on flickr, these are plant-feeding bugs.

Stinky bug identification, TripAdvisor!

And besides a re-tweet from @TripAdvisor about this post, this was the only response I got from writing a message to TripAdvisor via their website, about this misleading error:

Hi Bedbugger,

Thanks for taking the time to write to us. Since our motto is, “Get the truth, then go,” we certainly don’t want to mislead our members about bed bugs! I can see that we responded to your comment on Twitter (twitter.com/tripadvisor), and I’ll also forward this email to our PR team in case they want to contact you themselves.

Thanks, and best of luck with all your Bedbugger endeavors!

Regards,
[name withheld]
TripAdvisor Support Team

A striped stink bug:

Photo credit: Luis Miguel Bugallo Sánchez, under Creative Commons license.

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Jane Hotel residents protest Cynthia Rowley show

nobugsonme — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 02:26:28 +0000

20081023-janeHotel.jpg

Originally uploaded by chromewaves

Racked reports that residents of the Jane Hotel in New York are picketing the Cynthia Rowley NYC Fashion Week show being held on the premises.

Genius picket sign?

“Question: Are Bed Bugs the New Black?”

In New York, baby, you know they are.

The Jane has been trumpeted by its owners for its quirky “Mansion in decline” and “Darjeeling Limited” vibe.

The bed bug problem complained of by long-term tenants has been mentioned in the press before. In December, 2008, the New York Observer noted that, while the Jane was being revamped from an SRO (f/k/a/ the Hotel Riverview) into a $99-a-room hotel,

Holdovers from the Hotel Riverview era claim to be getting the raw end of the deal. Eviction notices began arriving in short order. At least 10 current tenants are now facing homelessness, according to the busy docket at housing court.

Those who remain describe insufferable living conditions throughout the ongoing reconstruction effort, citing rodents, bedbugs, heating and plumbing problems, including “broken water pipes which caused cascading waters to flood the bathrooms, feces and other bodily discharges on the bathroom floors,” according to court papers.

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Woman says she suffered bed bug bites at Bally’s in Atlantic City

nobugsonme — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 05:32:58 +0000

Fox 29 Philadelphia reports Gail Edmond claims she suffered from bed bug bites on her arm, wrist, finger, and stomach, while staying at Bally’s Resort and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Edmond says she isn’t seeking a payout:

“Want money? I’m not hurting. I don’t want money from Bally’s. My main concern here was, I wanted to see exterminators go in the room. I wanted to see them correct the problem,” says Edmond.

The woman went to an emergency room and doctors diagnosed the bites as being from bed bugs. (We’re told that it is not possible to do this with any certainty, though it’s understandable they might come to this conclusion since the bites apparently appeared while she was staying in the hotel.) She was given a prescription for something also.

While Fox 29 viewers are probably horrified by the idea of being bitten by bed bugs while staying in a hotel room, the real horror begins if you actually bring bed bugs home. We really hope that did not happen in this case.

You can watch the video or read the story on Fox 29’s website.Similar Posts:

It’s summer in Australia, and the bed bugs are in high gear

nobugsonme — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:28:26 +0000

Bed bugs bite year round, but they breed more quickly in warmer weather.

Bed bug expert entomologist Dr. Stephen Doggett of Westmead Hospital spoke to Australia’s Daily Telegraph about the problem, which appears to be as bad down under as anywhere.

Calls about the problem increased 4500% from 2000-2006, and “Westmead’s entomology unit had calculated the bugs cost $100 million in lost hotel revenue and eradication costs in Australia” during the same six-year period.

$100 million in lost revenue and eradication costs.

We can only assume the same is happening in other places with bed bug problems, like New York, Toronto, Boston, San Francisco, Halifax, London, and, well, everywhere else.

You’d think that the hotel industry would be falling over itself to sponsor research and development into better solutions, and lobbying for legislation to help curb the problem.

But I suspect that everywhere, just as Doggett told the Daily Telegraph about the local situation, “The accommodation industry does not want to admit the scale of the problem.”

And we all know what the first step is, right folks?

Admitting you have a big problem.

Well, okay. Perhaps the 12-steppers have it wrong.

Perhaps the first step is education.

The Daily Telegraph tells us, “Westmead Hospital will, for the first time, run courses on how to detect and control the blood suckers next year.”

And if anyone knows, they do. Doggett, and Westmead, are behind this amazing publication.Similar Posts:

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