“Bedbug infestation hits Monroe County”

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Bedbug infestation hits Monroe County Posted: 01 Jun 2010 02:04 PM PDT Kris Kirschner/Eyewitness News Bloomington - They're tiny little blood suckers that burrow in crevices and mattresses, often in hotels and sometimes in homes. The subject of a classic bedtime rhyme, bedbugs are a real problem in Monroe County and getting rid of them has been "quite an undertaking" says the director of Indiana University's Environmental, Health, and Safety Management Office Mike Jenson. Last fall, bedbugs showed up in several rooms in a now-defunct fraternity house on campus. "Since then we've had three different incidents in married student housing," Jenson said. There were even reports from hotel rooms at IU's Memorial Student Union. Cases have also turned up in private homes and hotels in Bloomington and Monroe County, which has prompted the formation of a "bedbug task force," consisting of representatives from IU, Monroe County schools and the local health department. The big goal is to educate. "We've been aggressively training staff to recognize the (bedbug) situation," said Jenson. The recent bedbug infestation, say experts, has become a bigger problem in the U.S. in just the past year. International travelers are often the carriers, which is why hotels and college campuses are typical targets. Exterminators are seeing a rise in calls about bedbugs as well. A representative for Arab Pest Control in Indianapolis says, "Bedbugs have taken the place of termites in terms of business by dollar value". Experts say bedbugs are typically resistant to most pesticides. Any hotel or home is susceptible. On the IU campus, the one place bedbugs have not been reported is in the dormitories. At places where they were spotted, officials say they were exterminated with a costly heat treatment. Jenson believes they've curbed the bedbug problem there for now. But with no means of true prevention - and the resistance to pesticides - it's likely this bug problem won't easily be put to bed. Related links Controlling bedbugs IU Office of Environmental, Health and Safety Management

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