Author Archives: toronto

Taking public transit is already stressful enough without the added effort of trying not to think about how dirty it is.

Well, here's that reminder for you: bedbugs are spotted in very public places all the time. In fact, Toronto was recently named the worst city for bedbugs in Canada.

They can basically pop up anywhere, but when it's somewhere public, it can be horrifying.

The latest bedbug locale: Line 1 of the TTC.

A large reddish bug was spotted crawling along the blue fabric seats of the subway on Line 1.

Many pointed out on Twitter than vinyl seats are often used for a reason. They're easy to clean and less likely to hang on to dirt (and bugs).

Others were wondering whether the small creature paid its Presto fare. It probably didn't.

The TTC customer service Twitter folks responded to questions to let concerned (and horrified) readers know that all the vehicles are cleaned daily. If something is spotted, send in a complaint and they'll give that vehicle a real deep clean.

The customer service staff also pointed out that bedbugs are unlikely to thrive in such an "inhospitable environment" as the subway.

Hopefully that helps you sleep at night.

Excerpt from:
Someone just found a bed bug on a TTC subway seat

Infestations of bedbugs in federal buildings in Ottawa and across the river in Gatineau, Que., have cost the Liberal government nearly $1 million during the last three years.

According to Blacklocks Reporter, exterminators were hired to inspect and fumigate 34 federal buildings and search dogs were used to inspect Canada Post headquarters, where 15 cubicles were sprayed on Nov. 30.

The final bill for extermination of the bedbugs, since 2017, was $575,523 but the figure does not include an additional $400,000 put up by Public Works Canada.

There is an urgency for the requirement considering the health and safety risks associated with the bedbug situation in the national capital area, federal bureaucrats wrote, according to Blacklocks. The bedbug situation in federal government buildings in the national capital area is unforeseeable as this is something that is not expected in an office setting.

Canada Post, the Canada Revenue Agency, Canadian Police College, Department of Fisheries, Department of Health, Department of Immigration, Department of Industry, Department of Public Works, Department of Transport, Library and Archives Canada and the National Printing Bureau were all hit by an infestation of bedbugs.

The Environmental Health Centre also used dogs to search for bedbugs on Nov. 8 after staff spotted bugs and furniture was destroyed. At the Department of Immigration, bedbugs forced the closure of the 11-storey office.

In the past, insecticides such as DDT helped to keep the bedbug population at bay with residues that continues working after the product was sprayed, the Pest Management Regulatory Agency wrote in its 2006 guide about bedbugs. Now with the increase in use of bait traps instead of broad spectrum sprays, specific pests such as ants and cockroaches are being targeted and bedbugs are no longer being eliminated.

Read more:
Bedbugs in federal buildings have cost Liberal government nearly $1 million - Toronto Sun

Officials say bedbugs are not a public-health issue. Tell that to the people whose homes have been infested by the bloodsucking parasites.

The reason Manitoba, like other jurisdictions, does not categorize bedbugs as a public-health issue, a designation that could trigger much-needed resources and funding, is that the insect is not known to spread disease.

Posted: 24/01/2020 7:00 PM

Elizabeth Warbansky desperately needs to scratch. Her arms. Her scalp. Her backside.

The constellation of red dots all over her body taunted her before she was prescribed anti-itching cream. If a bedbug isnt sucking on her blood, phantom pests are. Its been this way for the better half of the last six months, when the 66-year-old first learned her one-bedroom apartment in south River Heights was infested.

Read Full Story

Thats small consolation to the many Manitobans battling bedbugs, for whom its definitely a critical issue, personal if not public.

The psychological, social and economic effects of a bedbug infestation can be overwhelming. People lose sleep, literally, knowing the pests typically hide in the seams of mattresses, awaiting the opportunity to emerge and feed on their hosts. They experience considerable stigma as workplaces, schools and friends are cautious about welcoming people who may unwittingly transport bedbugs. Repeated remediation treatments can cost thousands of dollars, and the disruption in a familys life can be tumultuous.

Unfortunately, an increasing number of Manitobans can personally confirm a recent resurgence of bedbug infestations. Two local pest-control companies say they alone performed 9,264 bedbug-related chemical and heat treatments last year. Among Canadian cities, Winnipeg is second only to Toronto in bedbug infestations. More complete statistics are unavailable because Manitoba has no single authority assigned to the bedbug issue, an absence of oversight that should be rectified.

The bedbug scourge doesnt currently fall under a specific municipal or provincial department, leaving citizens without an abundance of accurate information regarding the extent of the problem in Manitoba and what measures, if any, are underway to contain it.

This lack of government initiative might surprise the unfortunate citizens who discover the pests and immediately start looking for help.

The first step is identify the bugs, which are reddish brown and about the size of apple seeds. In Toronto, the public health department will accept samples of suspected bedbugs and corroborate the dreaded suspicion. But in Manitoba, no civic or provincial authority will accept samples for identification purposes.

Are government subsidies or tax breaks available to help Manitobans dealing with bedbug infestations? Yes, a small amount of financial help is available to help defray the considerable expenses, but the funding is not widely publicized. Also, the criteria to qualify for financial help, which is typically distributed through non-profit community organizations, have been tightened and are of assistance mostly to people dealing with hoarding or sanitation issues.

How about helping prospective tenants by listing multi-family units and apartment buildings that have had bedbug problems? In California, government officials are required to provide in writing the bedbug history of a building when asked. In Manitoba, renters are afforded no similar help from government.

The stress caused by bedbug infestations can be overwhelming. (Mike Deal / Free Press files)

Instead, Manitobans have to rely on alternatives that are, lamentably, open to misuse. There are crowdsourced websites that list the addresses of buildings purported to have had bedbugs, but in those online settings anyone can add an address, creating the risk of unethical renters falsely reporting infestations in an effort to harm the reputations of landlords with whom they are involved in disputes.

Manitoba could follow the example of other jurisdictions by tasking leadership with co-ordinating an offensive against bedbugs, investing in public education and providing funding to help people on the margins afford treatments before bedbugs migrate to neighbouring suites and houses.

Everyone who has had bedbugs agrees on one point: you cant ignore the problem and hope it goes away. The bedbugs are currently winning in Manitoba, and beating them will require the province to step up its action.

See the original post here:
More action required in battle against bedbugs - Winnipeg Free Press

Bed bugs seem to be everywhere in Toronto: residences, hospitals, hotels and libraries. Even movie theatre patrons are (notoriously) reporting outbreaks. But how did it all start? Only a few years ago, "don't let the bed bugs bite" seemed an archaic way to wish someone a restful sleep. Now, it's a legitimate concern. Read on to discover how a tiny bug became a major problem for our city.

1880s in England - 75% of homes are infested with bed bugs. Although there is no data for Toronto, the bed bug problem is likely comparable. If the current infestation is left untreated, a similar percentage of homes could become infected.

1940s and 1950s - Pesticides, in conjunction with concerted efforts on the part of governments, essentially eradicate bed bugs as a pest in Western countries.

1970s - DDT use becomes increasingly restricted in Canada. In the 1980s, it is outright banned. A decline in DDT use has been suggested as the cause of the bed bug resurgence. However, bed bugs were showing signs of resistance to DDT as early as 1947.

1995 - British officials begin to see rising rates of bed bug infestations.

pre-2003 - Bed bug complaints to Toronto city officials are "sporadic and mild."

2003 - 46 reports of bed bugs are made to Toronto Public Health. Toronto pest control companies make 1,300 treatments.

2005 - 197 requests are made to Toronto Public Health for help dealing with bed bugs.

2006 - The number of reports made to Toronto Public Health drops slightly to 147. Maciej Ceglowski, a Romanian, creates bedbugregistry.com after being bitten by bed bugs in San Francisco. Toronto is one of seven North American cities that Ceglowski includes on his site.

November 12, 2007 - Councillor Paula Fletcher argues bed bugs should be declared a "health hazard." In response, the Board of Health requests the Medical Officer of Health prepare a report on bed bugs.

2007 - One unnamed pest control company reports to Woodgreen Community Services that they made 4,800 treatments in 2007.

February 2008 - The Board of Health recommends that Toronto should launch an action committee against bed bugs.

March 2008 - Toronto's Bed Bug action committee launches. In April, it is renamed the Toronto Bed Bug Project.

March 2008 - October 2008 - 1,500 bed bug reports are made to Toronto Public Health.

November 12, 2008 - The Medical Officer of Health releases a report on the status of the infestation. The report suggests that although progress has been made, more work needs to be done to create a coordinated response. Funding to help vulnerable groups is recommended.

February 2009 - A pilot project chooses five apartment buildings, including a tower in St. James Town, to test eradication and control methods.

November 3, 2009 - Toronto Public Health and the Bed Bug Project report that more work and dedicated funding is needed to fight the growing bed bug problem.

November 19, 2009 - Woodgreen Community Services releases its encyclopedic report on bed bugs, "Bed Bugs Are Back: Are We Ready?" Their answer is a definitive, "No." Without treatment, the report argues that bed bugs could become endemic in homes, offices, schools, movie theatres and public transit.

March 30, 2010 - The Toronto Star's map of bedbug infestations in 2009 lets you try to figure out which areas of the city are free from bed bugs. Hint: very few of them.

June 3, 2010 - MPP Mike Colle introduces the Renters Right to Know Act in the provincial parliament. If it passes, it will force all landlords to disclose to potential tenants whether or not the residence has had any problems with bed bugs in the last five years.

June 11, 2010 - William Osler Health Centre in Etobicoke fights an outbreak.

July 9, 2010 - Caboto Terrace, a seniors' residence, gets itchy.

July 13, 2010 - Insight Pharmaceuticals puts Toronto as number three on their list of North American cities most infested with bed bugs.

July 16, 2010 - Bed bugs bite the browsers at the Toronto Reference Library. The Yorkville and Parliament branches also report bed bugs.

July 31, 2010 - Calls made in 2010 to Toronto Public Health about bed bugs have already reached 1,076.

August 24, 2010 - MPP Mike Colle announces a bed bug summit at Queen's Park will be held on September 29. Music writer Helen Spitzer comes back from a screening of Scott Pilgrim at the Scotiabank Theatre with what looks like bed bug bites. After getting the runaround with Cineplex's phone system, she tells her friend (and Twitter user) James Rocchi about her concerns.

August 30, 2010 - James Rocchi tweets "Bad, Bad news from Toronto re: #TIFF10: Torontonian Friend got, yes, bedbugs at the Scotiabank -- aka where all press screenings are." Cameron Bailey and Cineplex fight back to ensure the resulting brouhaha does not disrupt the fest.

The future? - With no magic bullet to defeat the critters, and a still-evolving public response, the infestation looks like it is going to get worse before it gets better.

Need more information, trying to figure out whether you have bed bugs, and wondering how to get rid of them? Woodgreen Community Services has produced this helpful guide. And contact Toronto Public Health to report any bed bug problems.

Lead image from Wikimedia Commons. Second by mandrs in the blogTO Flickr pool.

Read the rest here:
Bed bugs in Toronto - blogTO