Bed bugs are back
- Easy international travel has brought bed bugs to rich industrial nations.
- The bugs feed on blood, usually at night.
- Bites can become inflamed, not known to carry diseases.
- During the day, the bugs hide in the bedding or cracks in the bed.
An alarming number of homes in the region and country have been invaded by bedbugs, said Mark Case, director of environmental Health at Montgomery County Public Health.
“They are going to be here a while until we learn how to control them,” he said.
Ohio was declared the bedbug capitol of the U.S. in recent reports by Time magazine and CBS’ “Early Show.”
“In 2005 we probably did less than 20 bedbug jobs,” said Jay Moran, owner of the Dayton area’s A-Abel Exterminating. “In 2010 we’re now doing more than 20 jobs each week.”
Because the tiny pests that feed on human blood and often hide in beds don’t carry diseases, health departments don’t keep exact counts of complaints.
“If you are the one being impacted by it, it is really serious,” Warren County health commissioner Duane Stansbury said. His department has received about 100 calls a year since 2008.
Miami County Health Commissioner Jim Lunken said there is not much local officials can do.
“Most of the people dealing with bedbugs are good, clean living people,” he said.
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