Bed bugs strike P.E.I. – Prince Edward Island – CBC News

They arethe subject of a lawsuit in California, and Prince Edward Island has not been immune to the return of bed bugs as a serious problem in North America.

The tiny, blood-sucking insects were all but wiped out in North America in the 1950s, largely through the use of DDT, but the pest continued to thrive in other parts of the world. In the last few years, an increase in international travel and more cautious use of chemical pesticides have led to a resurgence of the bug.

Charlottetown's 4-star Delta Hotel was victim to an infestation last year.

Hotel manager Michael Bird found bed bugs are hard to get rid of. ((Bill van Asperen/CBC))

"We discovered them unfortunately, it was reactive because a customer complained about having itch and bites," said hotel manager Michael Bird.

"We reacted to that and it was a first for us. We immediately called in our pest control services and began to take some action."

Bird discovered getting rid of bed bugs is not as easy as calling pest control. Before declaring the room free of pests, they threw out the mattress and box spring not just once, but twice.

"We did do it twice. Our problem was limited to one room, but we took all the precautions and we couldn't kill them," said Bird.

"Even though it wasn't recommended, we felt we had to go to the nth degree to make sure they didn't come back."

Cleaning no help with bed bugs

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Bed bugs strike P.E.I. - Prince Edward Island - CBC News