BED BUG INFORMATION FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES Created by Brian Arnold, Stark County Sheriff’s Dept.

BED BUGS!AN OLD PEST MAKES A COMEBACK!

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY

*Majority of this material is from Jackson Township Fire Department, Grove City, Ohio who created this presentation.

Updated: 11- 4- 2011 by Captain Brian Arnold, Stark County Sheriff's Office, Canton, Ohio

Bed Bugs• What’s being done about Bed

Bugs?• Quick facts and myths• Where are they?• Where will they soon be?• Bed bug education• What we can do?

WHAT'S BEING DONE ABOUT BED BUGS?

• USEPA is considering allowing more pesticides to be use to kill bed bugs*

• Several cities in the country have developed “Bed Bug Task Forces” to deal with education and enforcement issues

• There is pending state legislation for bed bugawareness, SB 39, HB 129

BED BUGS – QUICK FACTS• Bed bugs were controlled, but never completely

eradicated in the USA after WWII through the use of highly toxic pesticides like DDT

• Many of the pesticides that were effective against bed bugs are no longer available

• Bed bugs have developed resistance to many of the pesticides that have been used to kill them

• Increased foreign travel, immigration, and importation of goods has helped to spread bed bugs

BED BUGS – QUICK FACTS

• Bed Bugs aren’t known to carry disease

• Bed bugs are blood feeders. They can live for a year after taking a blood meal

• Bed bug bites normally occur at night, and the bite is generally painless

• Most people develop itchy welts after they’ve been bitten

• Scratching the welts may lead to the development of dermatitis and secondary infections

BED BUGS – QUICK FACTS

A FEW BED BUG MYTHS

• Only “dirty people” get bed bugs

• “Bed bugs are only found in places like military barracks where people are crowded together”

• “Bed bugs are only a problem for low – income people”

BED BUG MYTHS DEBUNKED!

The greatest obstacle to managing bed bugs is overcoming the myths that are associated with them

These myths (and others like them) have created a stigma for people who find their homes infested with bed bugs

The bottom line is thisThe bottom line is this: Regardless of one’s hygiene, financial status, or place of residence, bed bugs can infest your home

BED BUGS ARE HERE, NOW!

• Bed bug infestations are out of control in Cincinnati

• Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Columbus, Findlay, Marion, Mansfield, Toledo and many other large and small towns across Ohio are battling bed bugs

• No community or neighborhood is immune

• Rich or poor it doesn’t matter

BED BUGS ARE EVERYWHERE!

• Senior Housing

• Nursing homes

• Apartments

• Hotels

• Schools

• Office’s

• Firehouses

• Police stations

Bed bugs have been found in:• Private Homes• Churches• Movie Theatres• College Dorms• Social Service

Agency Offices

• AND...... Lock-Ups & Jails

PREVENTION

• Taking the precautionary measures in this presentation will also lessen the likelihood that you will transport other pests to work or home such as:– Fleas– Cockroaches

THIS IS THE ENEMY!

PHOTO COURTESY OF OSU EXTENSION

Carpet Infestation

Courtesy of OSU Extension

Furniture Infestation

Courtesy of OSU Extension

KNOW THE ENEMY! Adult bed bugs are

visible to the naked eye They are brown and

about ¼ – 3/8” long when full - grown.

In the nymph stages, bed bugs are whitish and smaller, but they are still often visible.

They don't fly, but they are adept crawlers, and they move FAST! –They scatter quickly if they’re disturbed

KNOW THE ENEMY

• Bed bug eggs are glued to the surface they've been laid on, so they're hard to dislodge

• They reside along baseboards – photo shows eggs, nymphs, and adults beneath carpet edge

Courtesy of University of Kentucky

KNOW THE ENEMY

• Females lay 1, 2 eggs per day - 10 to 50 eggs in batches – 200 to 500 in lifetime

• Eggs hatch in about 10 days

• Nymphs look for food, die within 2 days if they do not feed

• Needs a blood meal to molt, there are five progressively larger nymphal stages until adulthood

• Reach maturity in about five weeks

KNOW THE ENEMY

• Average life span is six to nine months

• Development is ideal with temperatures of 70 to 82 degrees

• Entire life cycle from egg to adult is 5 weeks to 4 months depending on temperature and food availability

• They will feed every few days if a host is available

LIFE CYCLE

KNOW THE ENEMY

• Fast moving insects

• Nocturnal blood feeders

• Inject a sharp beak, in the sleeping host

• Inject a anticoagulant

• Nymphs feed 3 minutes – adults 10 minutes

• Then hide to digest blood

• Prefer, fabric, wood and paper to hide

KNOW THE ENEMY

• Bed bugs love to hide in nooks and crannies

• Furniture joints, receptacles, baseboards, cracks in the wall, behind picture frames, and suitcases are ideal hiding places

KNOW THE ENEMY• Bites may itch, but not always. The welts that

form whitish, but they may become inflamed. The bites often occur in rows

• Bites do not have a red spot in the middle as in flea bites

• Bed bugs are not known to transmit disease, but scratching the welts may lead to skin infections

KNOW THE ENEMY• Bed bugs leave tell-tales signs such as blood

stains near the bite site

• Dark deposits (fecal spots) occur on sheets, mattresses and & walls

• In severe infestations, a sweet, musty odor from the insects’ scent glands may be present

KNOW THE ENEMY• Bed bugs are attracted by our body heat and

the carbon dioxide that we exhale

• Bed bugs prefer humans to other mammals and birds, but they will feed on them, also

BED BUG CONTROL• Bedbugs are hard to

kill

• No “over the counter” pesticide is effective

• “Bug bombs” are designed to kill flying insects only scatter bed bugs

• Treatment requires a licensed pest control operator

• People with bed bugs have to

1)Reduce clutter

2)Encase their mattress and box springs

3)Store their belongings in tightly closed plastic bags or containers

4)Vacuum the affected area daily

MORE ABOUT BED BUG CONTROL

• Eradication of an infestation requires:

–Multiple treatments

–The use of several different pesticides

–Compliance by the occupants

–Disposal of infested furniture (sometimes)

ARE YOU ITCHING TO AVOID AN INFESTATION?

You never know when you'll be called to a Bed – Bug infested building

Courtesy of University of Kentucky

ARE YOU ITCHING TO AVOID AN INFESTATION?

– Wear shoe covers whenever you enter a potentially infested place

– Tuck pant legs into your socks or boots

– Inspect shoes before entering your vehicle or returning to the station or jail.

– Store your footwear in a sealed plastic bag until they can be placed in a dryer for 30 minutes

– Suggest you have a spare pair of shoes in your vehicle

TAKE PRECAUTIONS!

• Stand in the middle of the living room, kitchen or where ever you are comfortable

• Do not lean up against the walls, doors, stoves, or sit on any cloth or leather furniture

• Do not place any article on furniture, bedding or carpeting

• Wooden furniture is acceptable, but you still want to be careful!

YOUR VEHICLE

• Keep in your car

1.Protective shoe covers

2.Sealable plastic bags

3.Change of clothing and footwear

4.Tyvec® coverall with hood for severe infestations

• Keep your vehicle clear of clutter

• Vacuum weekly

• Inspect periodically for bed bug presence

ARE YOU ITCHING TO AVOID AN INFESTATION?

– Change your clothes at work

– Put the dirty laundry in a sealed plastic bag

– You can either leave it there or take it home to be washed and dried

PRISONER PROCESSING

• Recommend that upon entry during the pre-screening process the prisoner is asked:

1.In the last three months have you stayed in a place where you think you may have been exposed to bed bugs?

2.Have you been bitten by bed bugs or do they have bites or blisters and you don’t know why?

PRISONER HAS BED BUGS• Isolate the prisoner in a barren cell or shower

• Remove all of their clothing and place the articles in a hot water soluble bag

• Place the bag in a washer on a hot water setting

• If you cannot wash the clothes immediately put them in a plastic bag and seal it.

• Dry the clothing on Cotton or hottest setting for not less than 30 minutes

• If they have footwear that cannot be washed, seal them in a plastic bag until you can place them in a dryer

DRYER RACK• Footwear can be

placed on a dryer rack.

• Dryer placed on the highest heat setting

• Run the dryer for 30 minutes

• Store the footwear in a plastic bag or sealable plastic container as an added precaution

PRISONER HAS BED BUGS

• Have the prisoner take a shower

• Ensure that they thoroughly soap up and rinse

• Segregate them until they can be examined by medical staff

• Contact the Health Department

DO AN INSPECTION• If the cell or housing unit is contaminated

– Remove all bedding and place in sealed bags labeled “Bed Bugs”

– Wash & dry bedding on highest heat settings– Clean the mattresses with soap & water– Dispose of the bags in an outside dumpster and any

mattresses that have cracks and write on them that they have bed bugs

– Power wash the cell(s)– Seal any crevices– Steam clean carpets – Repaint– Contact an exterminator

ARE YOU ITCHING TO AVOID AN INFESTATION?

• At Home:

– Be very careful about bringing used furniture, clothing or bedding into your home

• Seal new or used clothing that you’ve bought in a plastic bag and wash and dry in a hot dryer for at least 30 minutes

• If you’ve travelled, don’t take your suitcases in the house. Put the contents in plastic bags until they can be washed and dried

ARE YOU ITCHING TO AVOID AN INFESTATION?

• Check furniture for bed bugs and eggs. Used upholstered furniture (and some new stuff) has been found to be bed bug infested

Sleep Tight, Don’t let the Bed Bugs Bite!

COBBTF MISSION

• Develop consistent messages about bed bugs for the community

• Develop educational materials available to everyone in the community

• Develop consistent enforcement strategies

• Create a web site to use as the main source of information

• Tailor information for each at – risk group

COBBTF STRUCTURE

• Headed by a Steering Committee

• Established a Media Relations and Community Outreach Committee to oversee the products developed

• Deliberately non-jurisdictional. No agency or organization controls the Task Force – it exists for the benefit of everyone. Everything that we produce is freely available to all

THE CENTRAL OHIO BED BUG TASK FORCE (COBBTF)

• Formed in November, 2008 as the number of bed bug complaints received by Columbus Code Enforcement and Franklin County Board of Health began to rise

• Voluntary organization made up of representatives from schools, fire departments, landlords, tenant rights groups, hotel and lodging, health care, pesticide industry, Franklin County and Columbus Health Departments

• We're always looking for more people to get involved!

OUR WEBSITE

centralohiobedbugs.org