The Hazleton, Pennsylvania school district went bed bug-wild on Wednesday, after a single student apparently discovered a single bed bug bite after a sleepover, according to the Standard Speaker.

The discovery of a child with a bedbug bite at the Valley Elementary Middle School on Tuesday led exterminators to search five schools on Veterans Day to make sure there was no infestation before classes resumed Thursday.

School administrators checked with the family of the student who was bitten and found that she had attended a sleepover. Her family and the family that hosted the sleepover have a total of six children who attend five schools: Valley, Hazleton Area High School, the Ninth Grade Center, the Hazleton Area Career Center and Heights-Terrace Elementary/Middle School.

Not only did the pest control company search the well-trod paths those six students normally moved along, checking their classrooms, buses, and lockers they all used, but

As a precaution, technicians sprayed a mix of five chemicals in the areas where the students traveled. Temborski said the chemicals don’t harm people and dry in two to four hours, so the closing of school for Veterans Day provided an ideal time to work.

In addition, the two families involved (the girl’s family and the sleepover host’s family) had their homes professionally treated for bed bugs by All ‘Bout Critters Pest Control, the same company contracted to do the work in the schools:

The two families hired ABC Pest Control to exterminate the bedbugs in their homes, and their children won’t return to school until the work is done. Temborski said treating bedbugs takes at least two treatments given two days apart.

There may be much more to the story than is included in this article. ABC said they “found nothing” in the school.

However, it is not clear from the article whether any evidence of bed bugs was found in the homes, or how anyone knew it was a bed bug that left a mark on the little girl in question.

As much as I lament the ridiculous approach to bed bugs in New York City Schools, where busy teachers are apparently expected to trap a sample bed bug and ship it away before anyone will even look into a potential bed bug problem in classrooms, it seems possible that this school district’s response was overkill.

On the other hand, here in NYC, it’s illegal to treat for bed bugs unless you have proof of their presence; I am not sure of the laws in Pennsylvania or the local area surrounding the Hazelton, PA School District.Similar Posts:

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The Kingston Guardian (UK) reports that A school trip to an outdoor activity center went awry when students encountered bed bugs:

Children from Coombe Junior School had to camp outside while their dormitories were sprayed with pesticide last week, after bed bugs invaded an activity centre.

Year 5 pupils were affected when Hindleap Warren in East Sussex was infested with bed bugs, closing down many of its 80 rooms, after an outbreak six weeks ago.

The father of one Coombe Junior pupil said: “The children are very disappointed because they could only go for a couple of nights.”

But David Nottidge, director of Hindleap, denied poor cleanliness was responsible for the outbreak and said visitors had been warned of the bed bug outbreak before they arrived. He said the local council had also been informed.

A simple warning means little to people who don’t know much about bed bugs.

It would therefore be interesting to know what kind of information was provided about bed bugs — and how to avoid them — for these visiting groups, and for the local council. I truly hope they also took precautions to avoid taking bed bugs home.

The same article notes that students from another school group, Claremont Fan Court School in Esher, returned home from the same center complaining they’d been infected with scabies there; the center denied the presence of the scabies mite.

In my experience, doctors frequently misdiagnose bed bug bites as scabies, and treat for scabies (my own doctor did the same).  Perhaps this was true in the case of these students as well.

See: Night of camping for Coombe pupils after bed bug infestation From Kingston Guardian.Similar Posts:

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An auxiliary gym at Denver’s Lake Middle School, which is used for an afterschool program, is infested with bed bugs:

The [afterschool] program was cancelled Thursday and will not reopen before Tuesday, pending approval from exterminators.

The gym, which contains a game room, office space and a TV room, is being sprayed with pesticides Friday.

“There were several pieces of furniture infested with what they call bed bugs,” Kayser said.

Kayser says Mi Casa staffers reported being bitten by the insects, but he was unaware of any such complaints from children.

The Mi Casa program at Lake involves about 85 children. A letter explaining the situation is being sent to parents.

I hope all staff were educated about bed bugs and their signs also.  Bed bugs could have come in with any staff member, child, or visitor, or even in a shipment of materials.

I also hope everyone is made aware that you can be bitten by bed bugs and not react. It’s quite common.

See the article at 9NEWS.com | Colorado’s Online News Leader | Bed bugs displace afterschool program.Similar Posts:

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Bed bugs recently discovered in a Dover, New Hampshire charter school.  Foster’s Daily Democrat reported,

The Cocheco Arts and Technology Academy canceled school Thursday after the city’s health inspector confirmed Wednesday afternoon that bugs a teacher found in a classroom were the same kind of insect that have cropped up in four other properties this year.

Although the city typically sees between seven and 10 cases of bedbugs each year, this is the first time one has come up in a nonresidential property, Health Inspector John Carlson said. And this is the fifth confirmed case of bed bugs in the city in the past three months, meaning there have already been half of the maximum number of cases that are typically reported in a year.

This discovery prompted Health Inspector John Carlson to realize that bed bugs are not just a residential issue:

“This has certainly opened my eyes to the fact that this may not be limited to houses only,” Carlson said. “It has certainly made me realize the need for health officers to be vigilant in the community — not just in houses but we also need to look at this in restaurants and in other public assembly areas.”

Bed bugs are not just a problem in homes.  They can, as school administrators discovered, pop up anywhere there are people.

Also significant: the article notes that the school director and teacher did not know what kind of bug they found. There’s a need for education about bed bugs; everyone should know what bed bugs look like at various life stages.

See: Bedbugs pop up at Dover charter school – Fosters.
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The Dayton Daily News reports that

Dayton Public Schools has closed the nursery and pre-kindergarten center at Longfellow Alternative Center because of bed bugs.

A nursery worker noticed the small bugs Wednesday, spokeswoman Jill Moberly said. The school called the parents of the nursery and pre-K program Wednesday and told them to keep their children home Thursday and Friday while the area was fumigated and cleaned.

And –

School officials also sent letters to all 187 students and children who attend Longfellow notifying them of the situation, Moberly said.

via Nursery, pre-kindergarten center closed because of bed bugs.

It is great that parents were notified about this, and that the school is getting treatment.

It’s also important that parents and staff now get educated about bed bugs, how easily they spread, how to recognize the problem (hint: everyone does not react to bed bug bites), and what to do if bed bugs are suspected.

We’re not sure if they used true “fumigation” methods, or if they are using this term generically to mean “bed bug treatment.”  If it was not Vikane gas (TM) or thermal treatment, staff and parents should take precautions since the school may not have entirely eliminated the problem in one treatment.

All schools and other institutions need to seek the advice of an entomologist who knows bed bugs well, in order to learn how to prevent bed bugs, and to develop a plan for what to do when they are suspected or found.  Spray treatments after detection are the tip of the iceberg.Similar Posts:

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• 160-unit Richmond, California complex evacuated for tent fumigation of bed bugs
• George Washington University has treated 60 student rooms for bed bugs since Fall semester

This video from WLWT and this article from WCPO announce that Hamilton County is warning parents about the possibility of children bringing bed bugs to or from schools.

According to WCPO, Hamilton County has issued guidelines to schools regarding bed bugs, which include:

training staff to identify bed bugs; discretely removing a child from the classroom for an inspection; bagging and sealing belongings that have bed bugs; and notifying parents when their children have bed bugs.

I am troubled by the language suggesting children who “have” bed bugs carry them around on their bodies, which sounds like a description of lice.

It is possible that a person could be covered in bed bugs, but it’s important to remember that bed bugs can crawl onto or off of a person (or their belongings) at any time. They do hitchhike on clothing or in bags, but they do not live on people. They generally feed for 3-10 minutes and then flee. If a bed bug is found on a child in school, it does not mean the child brought the bed bug into school.

Places, not people, are infested with bed bugs.

The WLWT video shows Greg Kesterman of Hamilton County Public Health reminding parents to “regularly check your child” and the child’s bed for bed bugs. Not bad advice, though bed bugs could be elsewhere in the home.

I am glad that Cincinnati’s school employees and parents are thinking about bed bugs and being told what to do when they surface. I am especially happy Hamilton County parents will hear from the school if bed bugs are found there. I just hope the message is made clear to parents that bed bugs are a different kind of communicable pest, and if anyone “has” them, they have them in their home (or schoolbus, or car, or school), not “on” a kid.
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The Staten Island Advance reported today that P.S.16 in Staten Island has a bed bug problem. They’ve had two treatments and the bed bugs persist. And it sounds like a fairly serious problem:

The creepy crawlies have been seen at PS 16 in the borough’s Tompkinsville community for several weeks now and exterminators have already visited the school twice, parents and education officials said.

“But this is still a continuous problem,” Ms. Guzman said. “I don’t know what’s going on. All I know is my child is putting her coat in her bookbag and the school had to get rid of puppets and lots of classroom supplies, even snacks.”

Nevertheless a New York City Department of Education official played it down:

Margie Feinberg, a DOE spokeswoman, said the Department was in the process of analyzing the specimens and that pest control went to the school yesterday.

“This is not a health issue but a nuisance issue,” Ms. Feinberg said. “Bed bugs do not carry disease. They are usually brought into the building on heavy clothing. We are looking into the matter.”

Though not yet known to spread infectious disease, bed bugs are nevertheless a health concern. The World Health Organization sure thinks so.

An even more immediate concern may be the costs of treating for bed bugs carried by so many, including parents whose kids may bring bed bugs home from school, or their landlords.

Back in January, Seth Donlin of the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation, and Development (HPD) told the Daily News,

“The Bronx had the second-lowest number of complaints last year,” said Seth Donlin of the city Department of Housing Preservation and Development, which keeps track of such calls to the city’s 311 hotline.

“It’s the lowest total after Staten Island, which is statistically insignificant,” Donlin said.

So Staten Island had the lowest number of complaints to 311 about bed bugs last year. It sounds like plenty of people in Staten Island are suffering now. One thing bed bugs do well is spread. Quickly.

Unless those bugs took the ferry in to school, or drove over the Verrazano Bridge, they may have come to P.S.16 with someone who lives in Staten Island. You can bet they’re probably going home with someone who lives in Staten Island.

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Channel 3 in Waterbury, Connecticut reported today,

There’s a lot wrong in that statement alone, let alone the report that follows.

First, check your children?!?

Bed bugs do not live on children. They are not like lice.

They may be carried briefly in clothing or harbor in bags.

But they primarily live in places: in beds, chairs or other furniture, in floors and walls. The child picked bed bugs up somewhere: could it be home? School? In a friend’s home, relative’s home, afterschool care? Restaurant? Public transportation? On the school bus right before he came to school? It could be anywhere.

Home is a likely source but not the only one by any means.

So what you need to check, or carefully inspect, or better yet have a professional (who is experienced with bed bugs) carefully inspect, is the physical environment the child lives in, goes to school in, and otherwise spends time in.

Second, the news report says bed bugs are the “size of a poppy seed and range in color from white to dark red.” Not quite accurate.

Bed bugs have five nymphal (pre-adult) life stages and one adult life stage. The smallest nymphs are 1/32 inch (1 mm) — as long as the thickness of a credit card. But adults are closer to 1/6 inch (6 mm) or a bit larger than an apple seed. And they will be more on the rusty-brown side of the color spectrum. Only the youngest nymphs will be “white” or translucent, or blood-red if just fed.

Third,

Health officials said that bed bugs can be removed from clothing by putting them in the dryer for two cycles.

“Two cycles” is pretty vague and misses the important point about the temperature needed to kill bed bugs.

A very hot dryer (180 F) will kill bed bugs and eggs hidden inside a sock in 5 minutes, entomologist Dr. Michael Potter tells us. Other fabrics may take more time based on thickness or size, possibly much longer. But the dryer really must be hot. A cooler dryer (120 F) would take at least 1/2 hour or more once it reaches that temperature. I really don’t know what a standard US dryer heat is, nor how long a typical dryer cycle is. It is probably best to be as specific as possible under the circumstances.

Finally, when I hear stories like this, I want to know more about how school officials determined the bed bugs were coming from the child’s clothing or things.

Because if you simply found bed bugs on a child, they could also have crawled onto him from the immediate surroundings.

I really hope all the parents will learn about bed bugs and inspect their homes carefully. I also hope the family of this child will get help if their home is indeed infested, and that others will not treat them badly. Because even if he did bring bed bugs into school, it is not his fault.

Bed bugs can happen to anyone and should not be the source of shame. They are not caused by a lack of hygiene, but spread easily from one person to another. People who have them always, always caught them from someone else. It’s usually not really anyone’s fault.

Waterbury has apparently had lots of bed bug infestations.

And other schools have been dealing with this problem to varying degrees of success.Similar Posts:

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More information about the Bracken County Schools bed bug situation. A new article from WCPO.com news says T&M Pest Control is treating Bracken County schools for bed bugs this weekend.

Terry says, “A pest control program for bed bugs is very detailed. You’ve got to get all the crevices. We are doing a little more than we really need to, but it’s to make sure we don’t have a problem in the future.”

That means Terry’s son, Tony, has to bag contents of every locker in the school, and then spray those contents with an insecticide.

Tony and his mother are wearing only gloves now, but when the heavy fumigation gets underway, they’ll be wearing face masks, too.

I am interested in these methods, since I have not heard PCOs here talking about spraying into bags of belongings. Perhaps a PCO would tell us what this might be.

I initially thought it was a good thing that Bracken County Schools were taking bed bugs seriously after finding a bed bug in school, since cities like New York City are so slow to take action against similar situations. My initial positive sense was based on Bracken County’s willingness to treat schools for bed bugs. I thought that their treatment of every school in the district was based on a sense that bed bugs must be more widespread than in just this one school.

Now, however, I am becoming more concerned about the community’s response, especially their apparent obsession with pinpointing its source. It betrays a lack of education about bed bugs and their behavior, which appears to be a prevalent problem elsewhere too.

Parents in Brooksville are divided about the schools closing an extra day just for bed bugs.

Elizabeth Aulick, a mother of two Bracken County students says, “Yeah, it does concern me, but the letter I got said they only found one bug. If it’s one bug isolated to one child, keep him home for a few days.”

A mother of three Bracken County students, including one at the Middle School says, “I guess it’s a little unexpected. I never expected something like this, but I guess it’s a good thing. Just to be on the safe side. It didn’t both me, I said, ‘Well, that’s fine.’”

The school fumigation in Bracken County is getting the full support of the county health department there.

I am glad the health department in Bracken County recognizes bed bugs as a concern, since many don’t. However, I have to say that what’s being said about the child in this case is absurd.

People in Bracken County must not associate the schools’ bed bug issue, if they indeed have one, with this one student who may have had the bed bug on his things or on his clothing. Bed bugs can live and breed in schools or in school buses or public transportation, and they can crawl onto students at any of these locations (as well as many others). As we have taken pains to explain in the past, the presence of a bed bug on a person or their things absolutely does not prove the person brought the bed bug in.

All parents, including those of the child who was bitten by the bed bug, must search at home and have a qualified PCO inspect if anyone is complaining of bites or if they see any bed bugs or possible signs. However, it is crucial that parents and school officials realize that bed bugs are not lice, and do not live on people. They crawl on, feed, and run away. If a bed bug is found on a person in a school, it does not mean the person brought the bed bug to the school.

I would assume the Bracken County School officials know this, since they are treating every school, and not just the one the bed bug was found in. And yet it does not sound like the parents or media have been picking up on that fact.

If the child did indeed have had an infestation at home and brought them into the school, then his family, too, caught them from somewhere. They spread easily. And everyone should be alert. Everyone should be asking where this family might have picked up bed bugs: parents’ workplace? YMCA? School? Bus? Motel? Because where they got them, you can get them too.

However, the child should not be blamed, nor should he be kept home. People with active infestations need to take some steps to avoid spreading bed bugs. Treating the child himself as if he were contagious is an ignorant mistake. Similar Posts:

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The Bracken County, Kentucky, school system’s response was to shut down all schools for one day for precautionary treatment, after a bed bug was found in a classroom, Lex18 news reported yesterday.

Bracken County schools will be closed Friday after a middle school student was found to have an infestation of bed bugs, and one of the bugs was found in a classroom.

Bracken County Schools Superintendent Tony Johnson said in a release Thursday that the health department was contacted after the discovery, and that the schools will be closed in order to perform pest control treatments in each school as a precaution.

NBC WLWT5.com says that the school is being closed today, but that Monday and Tuesday were already scheduled as days off. Still, this gives schools more time to do their work. WLWT also adds:

Health department officials will oversee measures intended to prevent the spread of bedbugs, and the student will receive treatment, officials said.

This is interesting: it does not say the child’s parents will be directed to get treatment. It implies they may be taking care of it.

The most interesting thing here is that they found one bed bug, in one school, but they are treating them all. Oh, and they’re talking about it. The New York City Department of Education could learn a thing or two from them about how to deal with bed bugs.

More than a year ago, one of the first posts on this blog suggested that Lexington, KY was taking bed bugs more seriously than New York City. The same could definitely now also be said of Bracken County.

But is Bracken County’s response too enthusiastic? Is this overkill?
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