Bed Bugs Reported On Roosevelt Isand - Echhhhh Disgusting

Image of Bedbug From NY Times

The July 8-9 Roosevelt Island Daily Safety Incident Reports advise of the following:

Investigation - Reporter stated to PSD he was having problem with bed bugs. Reporter stated management was unable to assist. Reporter was referred to 311.

Very few things are as disgusting and creepy as bed bugs. They lurk in your furniture or bed and come out to feed on your blood at night. I inquired of Public Safety Director Guerra for more information as to which Roosevelt Island building was reported to have bed bugs but have not received a response as of yet. It is important to know which building the bed bugs have been reported in because once they are in one apartment they can easily get into adjacent ones. Residents of this particular building should be made aware so that they can take action.

The NY Times reported this week:

AFTER virtually disappearing for decades, bed bugs have made a comeback throughout the nation, with particularly bad infestations in densely populated apartment buildings....

... Small and nocturnal, the insects are hard to spot. They love to hide in mattresses and box springs, of course, but they also burrow in woodwork, night tables, picture frames, cushions and even behind outlet and light-switch covers. They come out only to feed on sleeping humans...

... Bedding, clothes, stuffed animals, backpacks and anything else you can fit into the clothes dryer can be decontaminated by 20 minutes on the high setting. Carry the items to the dryer in a cloth laundry bag that you can throw into the machine. If you use a plastic bag, discard it immediately; bed bugs or eggs might be lurking.

For items that can’t go in the dryer, consider packing them in plastic bins or bags and storing them for a year to make sure any hidden insects die.

For furniture and other large items, you may want to consider a professional fumigation service that will decontaminate the items away from your home and return them within a week or so. This can easily add $1,000 to your bed bug bill. But for antiques, heirlooms and other hard-to-replace items, it may well be worth the cost.

To learn how others rid themselves of bed bugs, the NY Times Wellness Column sought comments from their readers. Among the many comments were:

We had them in an apartment in Queens. We spent 6 months and five thousand dollars getting rid of them. Then we moved. 70 percent of our stuff is still in storage - if they are still in our possessions, they will eventually starve and die. I wouldn’t wish the experience on anyone. The psychological effects of such an infestation are lasting.

Techletter has 10 recommendations to apartment managers on how to get rid of bed bugs.

... 2. Be proactive. As soon as the first bed bug problem is reported and verified, assume that there are more and act aggressively. We can't emphasize this point enough: bed bug control can become extremely expensive once bed bugs become widespread. (It is not unheard-of for a property to spend $50,000 to finally "eliminate" a widespread bed bug infestation in a medium-sized apartment complex.)

3. Whenever a new bed bug infestation is identified, the apartments on either side next door, and above and below need to be inspected for bed bugs. A new infestation may be overflow from a severe infestation in a nearby apartment with a resident who does not want to report their infestation for some reason....

Ignoring them, as the person who made the complaint to Public Safety reports his building management did, should not be an option. Again, this is disgusting. I am glad to be finished with this post so I can stop scratching!

UPDATE 6 PM - RIOC Public Safety Director Keith Guerra advises that the above bed bug reporting incident was for 560 Main Street - Roosevelt Landings / Eastwood.