Woman says she was bitten by bedbugs at a Northside motel in Jacksonville, FL

By Russell Colburn
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A mother told Action News that she found bedbugs in her motel room in Northwest Jacksonville.
She was hospitalized with bites all over her body.
The mother says she and her 8-year-old son were sleeping in a room at Sunshine Inn with bedbugs. She was able to capture a few of them, but says there were many more crawling all over them.
“I looked in the mirror and noticed this here, up here,” Anita Mitchell said. “It's more than 20, 20 bites that I got.”

Mitchell said she woke up with bumps all over that started itching and swelling up.
“I had the guy that was living next to me come in the room to flip the mattress over. When he flipped the mattress over we saw two bugs, two bedbugs. Then we saw more and more,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said that fortunately, her son was not bitten and she immediately sent him home with his father.
Action News visited the motel. We were initially told to leave, but later manager Vijay Patel let us into a room.
“Do you believe there are bedbugs in room 20?” Action News reporter Russell Colburn asked.
“I don't believe it,” Patel said.
But he wouldn't let Action News into Room 20, saying he's been spraying insecticide as a precaution.
“If you want to see any other room, I can show you, I don't have any problem, but I cannot allow you to enter in room 20,” Patel said.
Mitchell said he has something to hide. But you can't hide the bites on her body, or the bugs in her photos.
“I feel disgusting and knowing that I see them, I just feel gross. It feels like just not even want to be in my skin right now,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said she will be filing a complaint against the motel and she could be taking legal action.
Florida's Department Business and Professional Regulation handles motel complaints.
The Sunshine Inn passed its last inspection and has no previous complaints about bedbugs.
- See more at: http://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/news/local/woman-says-she-was-bitten-bedbugs-northside-motel/nmCRX/#sthash.B65ncXrv.dpuf

When Bed Bugs Attack. Woman Attacked in Motel. CDC Warns & NY Times & NBC Worst year ever for Bed Bugs

When Bed Bugs Attack.
Emmy Award Winning Documentary! 


A Story of a Woman being Attacked in a Hotel Via ONE News

Experts are warning travellers to be vigilant when checking into accommodation, after a Christchurch woman was attacked by bed bugs at an Auckland motel.

Debbie Roome had travelled to Auckland for a friend's graduation, and was staying in a motel near the airport.

She awoke in the middle of the night to discover the bed bug infestation and hundreds of painful bites all over her body.

"I put my cell phone light on, had a look in the bed and saw these little bugs just scurrying for cover under the pillows and the blankets and I realised it was bed bugs," she told ONE News.

Ms Roome said she saw about 20 bugs disappear under the covers, and counted around 300 bites on her body.

"They seemed to develop through the course of the day," she said.

"They started off as little light bumps but by the time I was supposed to fly home I had these great big massive welts on my face all down my neck, both arms, on my back and my front and I was feeling quite sick with it."

The motel has refunded the cost of her room, but Ms Roome also wants compensation for her medical costs.

The motel's manager could not be reached for comment.

While Ms Roome's case is extreme, experts aren't surprised by the infestation, saying bed bugs are flourishing and becoming harder to eradicate.

"They were possibly controlled well by DDT, which just about kills any insect," said Canterbury Museum entomologist Cor Vink.

But since its ban, bed bugs have been harder to control, he said.

"Other insecticides haven't worked as well, they may have developed resistance to the insecticides we use."

And it's not just cheap backpackers that have problems with bed bugs.

"Some high class motels have had problems with them, and often the case is that they have to destroy all of the bedding and rip up the carpets to try to control them properly.

"They're very difficult to get rid of."

He added that an increase in travel contributes to the problem.

"They travel with people, they travel in luggage."

Mr Vink advised travellers to look for signs of bed bugs in the bed and mattress on check in, and to keep luggage elevated in luggage racks.

Bed Bug Pest Control Jacksonville Fl

The Bed Bug Survivor - How to Survive a Bed Bug Attack

Bed Bug Survival Guide 
Do the prep work that’s absolutely necessary before the exterminator treats your apartment. In that regard, one measure of an exterminator’s potential effectiveness will be the list of chores they hand you. Andy Linares (from Bug Off Pest Control Center, New York City) is responsible for much of the following homework assignment. Depending on your exterminator, you’ll be expected to complete some or possibly all of the following preparation before bed bug treatment can begin:
-    Remove all items from drawers, closets, bookshelves, cabinets and closets (clothes, bedding, and drapes should be laundered, steam-cleaned or dry-cleaned).
-    Pack infestible belongings into black plastic bags and seal them. Exposing the bags to direct sunlight for a day will usually generate enough heat to kill any bed bugs within in the bag – no matter their developmental stage. This technique only works during the summer, and so on cloudy days, Andy recommends sticking the bag into your car with the windows rolled up. “I guess the bag better not have holes in it,” I said. Andy agreed. “Yeah, maybe you should put the bag in your mother-in-law’s car.” I asked him what he would do if the infestation were discovered during cold weather. “Seal the bag good and store it until the summer – then stick it into the sun.” 
-    Remove as many bed bugs as possible by doing a serious vacuum job on your apartment. Use the crevice tool to vacuum furniture, shelves, inside drawers, baseboards, along carpet edges, hot air conduits, radiators, window and door frames, behind pictures and wall hangings. Then seal and toss out the vacuum bag as soon you’re done. Note: borrowing vacuum cleaners is illegal in some states.
-    Strip the bed and launder sheets, pillowcases, mattress pads, blankets and comforters in HOT WATER.While you’re at it – toss in any stuffed animals. Everything should be dried on “high” for twenty minutes or more. "What about shrinkage?" you ask. Unfortunately, the answer is that "nobody said this was going to be easy."
-    Remove any pets from the premises during treatment (and wash or replace their bedding). Turn off aquarium filters and air stones, cover the tanks with plastic wrap and tape it in place.
-    Get rid of cardboard boxes, bags, magazines and newspapers. Bed bugs like paper and wood – not metal and plastic.
-    Throw out torn or heavily infested items like mattresses and box springs and be sure to deface them so that others will be discouraged from carting them off from the curb. A pinned or taped-on warning label is not enough. Before you begin hauling your items out, consider donning gloves and a disposable suit before wrapping the bed bug-infested bedding in plastic. This will prevent you from spreading the bed bugs throughout the building or getting them on your clothes. When purchasing your next bed, consider buying one with a metal frame rather than a wooden one.
    Finally, don’t even think about bringing your sanitized belongings, new furniture, or new bedding back into your apartment until the exterminator gives you the "okay". And do ask the bed bug exterminator when you should resume vacuuming (since some of the pesticides they use leave an effective residue that should not be removed).
    Because most bed bug infestations are not eliminated by a single treatment, you should discuss scheduling a re-treatment to take care of new bed bug hatchlings who weren’t around for the toxic assault that hopefully left them as orphans. 
    “Whatever these pest control guys use, the initial treatment might kill the bed bugs but it probably won’t kill the eggs,” said Lou Sorkin.  “Generally, you need a re-treatment to kill the bed bug hatchlings.” 
    According to Andy Linares, this will be no sooner then fifteen days after your initial treatment, since that’s how long it takes bed bug eggs to hatch. He also recommends a quarterly re-treatment until you’re bed bug free for six months. 
    After that, you are officially a Bed Bug Survivor. 

Shared Via http://www.darkbanquet.com/info.php?page=Bed%20Bugged&sid=if70occtf9v1715vhit8b13771

Bed Bugs will become the number one household pest in the U.S. within two years.

Interesting Book about Vampire Creatures

Dark Banquet: Blood and the Curious Lives of Blood-Feeding Creatures.

There was a ton of research done on many animals, fish and bugs for the book. One of the scariest in my opinion is the one that can actually make it into our homes. BED BUGS! Below is a video of bed bugs being feed with some information about them.

Quoted Text from the Authors site
According to Cornell Cooperative Extension, bed bug expert,Dr. Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann bed bugs will become the number one household pest within five years(supplanting old favorites like roaches, mice, and termites). Since Jody made that statement four years ago... well you can do the math.
    “Bed bug-related calls to pest control companies are up across the entire U.S.” she said, “with no statistical variation between regions.”
    With that fact in mind, this section has been added to assist those people who do wind up getting bed bugs (or “know someone” who might have them). For everyone else, reading this section will demonstrate once and for all why you need to do everything possible to prevent a bed bug infestation in your home.     The two most important factors to consider are: finding a reputable exterminator (or pest control specialist) with experience treating bed bug infestations and doing the prep work necessary before they arrive to treat your home.  

Landlords who don't wipe out bedbugs!

To stop bloodthirsty insects from spreading through the city's rental housing, Concord is cracking down on landlords who let the bedbugs bite.

Under a six-month pilot program -- the first of its kind in Contra Costa County -- property owners who ignore bedbug infestations could face steep fines. The program treats bedbugs as a public nuisance and gives the Concord Police code enforcement unit the authority to oversee tenant complaints.

Once a resident files a bedbug complaint, a code enforcement officer will mail a notice to the property owners, giving them up to 30 days to hire a pest management company to inspect and exterminate the rental unit.

If the owner doesn't respond to the letter within 10 days, code enforcement will arrange for an employee from the county environmental health division to inspect the apartment.

The city will notify the owner if bedbugs are present and levy fines starting at $100 and increasing to $500 for each citation and a re-inspection fee until the landlord eradicates the insects.

"The program is really oriented to support and provide resources to tenants and property owners alike, so that they can work through this problem themselves without the involvement of the city and without enforcement action," said Concord police Sgt. Russ Norris, code enforcement supervisor. "It's only when things fail that we'll get involved."

Concord will pay $174 per hour for the county health inspector. The city will evaluate the cost and effectiveness of the program at the end of six months.

Bedbugs -- tiny, flat, reddish-brown insects that feed on human blood and usually bite at night -- have returned with a vengeance to Contra Costa County, with reports coming from Pittsburg, Antioch and Richmond as well.

Bedbugs live in upholstered furniture, mattresses and bedding as well as along baseboards and in cracks and crevices. Although the insects don't carry disease, their bites can cause itchy, red welts. Experts say bedbugs are difficult to get rid of because pesticides don't really work and the insects move easily between apartments.

Concord consulted with the county, a tenants' advocacy group and the California Apartment Association to develop the program.

Tenants Together, a statewide renters' rights organization, has been working with residents of several apartment buildings in the Monument Corridor that the group says are infested with bedbugs. For the past year, the group has been urging Concord to cite landlords who fail to address the problem.

"This policy is a great first step. We're really encouraged. We want to see it implemented right away," said Guillermo Elenes of Tenants Together. "We are expecting to see inspections in a timely matter after reports occur. We are expecting to see an immediate notice of violation."

Theresa Karr, executive director of the California Apartment Association Contra Costa/Napa/Solano Division, praised Concord for developing the program but expressed concern about the timeline.

"I can tell you, they can't get rid of them in 30 days," she said. "The impossibility here is not just for landlords but for tenants also. How do you get everything out of your unit if you really have an infestation? How do you get it all out of there so the unit can be treated?"

But Norris said the city is willing to be flexible as long as property owners demonstrate they are taking steps to get rid of the bedbugs.

"If we get a call from a property owner then we will work with them," he said.

Shared Via: http://www.contracostatimes.com/contra-costa-times/ci_25443916/concord-fine-landlords-who-dont-wipe-out-bedbugs

Life Cycle of Bed Bugs

Bed bugs have five immature nymph life stages and a final sexually mature adult stage. They shed their skins through ecdysis at each stage, discarding their outer shells, which are clear, empty exoskeletons of the bugs themselves. Bed bugs must molt six times before becoming fertile adults, and must take a blood meal in order to complete each moult.
Each of the immature stages lasts approximately a week, depending on temperature and the availability of food, and the complete life cycle can be completed in as little as two months (rather long compared to other ectoparasites). Fertilized females with enough food will lay three to four eggs each day continually until the end of their life spans (about nine months under warm conditions), possibly generating as many as 500 eggs in this time. Genetic analysis has shown that a single pregnant bed bug, possibly a single survivor of eradication, can be responsible for an entire infestation over a matter of weeks, rapidly producing generations of offspring. Need a Bed Bug Exterminator? Contact Us BugEvictors.com

Bed Bugs in Jacksonville Florida

Good night.  Sleep tight.  Don’t let the bed bugs bite!  I remember my parents saying this when I was a small child just before tucking me into bed at night.  But I really never knew what that meant.  After all, I had never even seen a bed bug!

Well, it’s amazing how things can change over the years.  To say I haven’t seen a bed bug now would be quite an understatement, as I have seen thousands within the last five years or so.  The bottom line is:  They are here now and will be for quite a while, from what the experts tell us.  So with that said, where does that leave us?  What can we do to keep from getting them in our homes?

First of all, no one is immune.  It doesn’t matter if you’re rich or poor, what gender or ethnic background.  Any one of us can get them!  And, by the way, in case you didn’t already know, they are epidemic throughout the United States right now.  This is a wakeup call for all of us to be cautious and aware, and to be proactive in the way we now think about these disgusting blood-sucking parasites.

Bed bugs can be found just about anywhere today – in clothing stores, hotels, motels, theaters, restaurants, mass transit, homes, hospitals, nursing homes, etc.  Visual Inspections are critical in determining whether or not you have bed bugs because they are experts at hiding and are very hard to see.  Newly emerged nymphs are a clear cream color approximately one millimeter in length and can hide almost anywhere within a room and in your clothing.  Check all belongings to make sure you don’t bring any bed bug hitchhikers back to your home.  If you suspect you have any in your clothing, 20 minutes in a hot dryer will usually eliminate them.

At home, start with inspecting the bed, the head area first, then the mattress, box springs and headboard.  Look for live bugs and smear marks, red or black in color.  Include inspecting furniture like recliners, couches, sofas, chairs, and even tables.  Use a bright flashlight and a magnifying glass.  If you confirm or even suspect you have a bed bug problem, it’s a good idea to call a professional pest control company to inspect and, if necessary, treat your home.  I have seen many cases where homeowners, with the best of intentions, attempt treating their own homes, only to make the problem worse by spreading the bed bugs throughout the entire home and wasting money on chemical products that usually don’t work.

If you would like additional information concerning bed bugs and treatments or wish to schedule an inspection, for Bed Bugs, Fleas, Roaches and Termites Control please visit us at www.bugevictors.com or call us at 904-783-2425.