Man Sues Over Bed Bug Infested Apartment

In Cleveland a law student from Case Western Reserve University filed a lawsuit against Reserve Square Apartments after claiming that his apartment there was infested with bed bugs.

The student, Joshua Bobrowsky, 26, is looking for $142,000 to cover the damages. He said that everything he owns is infested and three different apartments have left him with painful welts from being bitten. On top of that he has had months of emotional and psychological distress because of the infestation. Bobrowsky has said he is unable to sleep because of the bed bugs and that life is no longer enjoyable.

A lawyer representing Reserve Square Apartments is investigating Bobrowsky’s claims. No other tenants have complained of bed bugs.

Bed Bugs Turn a Woman’s Life Upside Down

Bed bugs are becoming a serious issues more and more every day. In a devastating article, written by Hugh Adami for The Ottawa Citizen, Ms. Dziedziczak is a woman who was forced to live with bed bugs. Ms. Dziekdziczak is a Polish woman who speaks very little English and lives in public housing and isn’t taken seriously when it comes to bed bugs. Ms. Dziedziczak was forced to sleep in her bathtub, on the floor, or sitting at the table wrapped in blankets after being bitten constantly from bed bugs in her bed. She even bought a new mattress but was forced to through it out as well as her couch after they became infested with bugs as well.

People claimed that her apartment was dirty, but this isn’t the case, in fact Ms. Dziedziczak is very clean. Ms. Dziedziczak has had city-hired exterminators have been to her unit about five or six times in the last 10 months and says she was ridiculed occasionally by those who came to spray her bed. They told her that she was imagining bed bugs and they weren’t real.

How horrible, those who have had bed bugs know how traumatic and stressful it can be. Imagine no one helping you or even believing you? Her sister stopped visiting because she didn’t want the bugs to follow her back home. Have questions or comments? Please share with us below.

Full story found here:

faceoff.com%2Fscripts%2Fcolumns.aspx%3Fpublication%3DOttawa%2BCitizen%26byline%3Dhugh%2Badami&p=2

So You Think Your Bed is Cozy? Think Again!

I bet your Christmas list doesn’t include “bed bugs” on it but unfortunately you may not have a choice because more and more bed bugs are hitching rides home with people. Bed bugs are little insects that feed off of the blood of humans. Although most commonly associated with hotels they can really be found anywhere and not just in your bed either.

More than 140 landlords attended the first meeting of a bed bug task force. Out of the 140 only five said that they’ve never had problem with bed bugs. What’s that say about the rest of them? One pest control company, Adams Pest Control, bed bug complaints have risen 25 percent within the last year.

A woman named Debbie Amrani has been getting bitten by bed bugs ever since she returned home from Miami, where she believes the bed bugs accompanied her home from. She’s spent 2,300 on a new method developed in the Twin Cities that is supposed to get rid of bed bugs. This cost doesn’t including replacing the bed sets in her home. A quote from the Amrani in the article states:

“I’m emotionally scarred, they can live for a year without feeding, so I still haven’t gone out and bought a mattress and box spring.”

Stacy O’Reilly, the president of Plunkett’s Pest Control, which was started by her grandfather says that 100 years ago bed bugs were so common people would put the foot of their bed in a can of kerosene to keep the pests from climbing onto the bed. When her father took over the business they began using DDT to eliminate bed bugs which worked very well but it was also killing eagles and other victims so it was banned and so the bed bugs came back.

Full story found here:

http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/35260894.html?elr=KArksD:aDyaEP:kD:aUzyaUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU

Bed Bugs are Biting in Hotels

In the 1970′s and 80′s bed bugs were pretty scarce because of pesticides and other older chemistry that was used to get rid of ants and cockroaches as well. The pesticides pretty much eliminated bed bugs all together, however they were still seen once in a great while. Today things are changing. Bed bugs are becoming more and more of a problem. We are constantly seeing it on the news all around the world, why is this?

In places like Mexico (a real hot bed for bed bugs!) and South America bed bugs have always been rampant. In fact they’ve probably developed a resistance to some of the compounds that we use today. So the little “hitchhiker” bugs come home with travelers thus spreading more and more.

John Bordsen (MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS) wrote a very interesting article for the Detroit Free Press. In his article he highlights where bed bugs first came from, something I’ve been interested in but haven’t been able to find a lot of information on. According to Bordsen human beg bugs or Cimex lectularius first became a problem when humans lived in caves, they are actually associated with bats (they both drink blood). According to research bed bugs came to America from Europe at the same time as the first settlers did.

Here’s some more shocking news: research says that you really can’t detect bed bugs until their population is around 200! In our FAQ we discuss the reproductive habits of a bed bug. In a room that is around 70 degrees and there are 40 bugs give it six months and there would be 5,905 bugs! So imagine not knowing until you have 200 bed bugs.

When it comes down to it the main cause of bed bugs is travel. Therefore no motel or hotel is worse than another, it all depends on if someone has been there who has bed bugs. This also means bed bugs can be found in homes, apartments, schools and businesses. So what can you do? First and foremost be cautious! Taking the time to look for bed bugs when you are on vacation or traveling can save you time, stress and money in the long run. When I say money I mean thousands of dollars! That’s how much people are spending these days to get rid of bed bugs and sometimes that doesn’t even work!

For more information on bed bugs check out our FAQ section and Checklist, both found at the top of the page. This will help ensure that you will stay bed bug free!

Full story found here:

http://www.freep.com/article/20081123/FEATURES07/811230360/1025/FEATURES