Chicago has crawled to the top of a list of the nation’s top cities for bedbugs. But a delegate agency responsible for the city’s pest control initiative says that Chicagoans don’t need to lose sleep over their new claim to fame.
Orkins, a pest control company that serves about 1.7 million customers nationwide, released a list of the top 50 cities where bedbugs did damage in 2012. Chicago topped the list, followed by Detroit, Los Angeles, and Denver. New York came in at number 10.
Orkin’s parent company, Rollins, operates eight pest-control brands. Rollins saw a 33 percent jump in bed bug business last year, compared to 2011. The top 50 list is based on how much business the company received in a city during the past year, according to a press release.
Safer Pest Control Project (SPCP), an independent non-profit based in Chicago, said that the list brings attention to a “very serious issue.” Nevertheless, the organization’s executive director, Rachel Rosenberg, dismissed it as a public relations ploy.
“They’re not doing a scientific estimation because it’s based solely on their customer base,” Rosenberg told the New York Daily News. “They’re not talking about every aspect of the city, just the people who call them. It’s a way to get their name out.”
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The SPCP is the City of Chicago‘s official “pest therapists.” They have partnered with the city to provide trainings and expert advice about how to handle bed bugs. Rosenberg admits that Chicago is behind other cities, particularly the city of New York, in creating a comprehensive strategy to battle bedbug infestations.
The City of Chicago received 1,365 calls reporting a bedbug infestation in 2011. In 2012, they received 1,533 calls, according to Medill Reports.
Rosenberg said that Orkin’s list is bad publicity for the city.
“That’s a list where you do not want to be number one,” she said.
The non-profit has teamed up with three of Chicago’s aldermen to introduce an ordinance that lays out guidelines for dealing with the pesky bugs. The ordinance will be presented to the city council later this month. It will give landlords and tenants a better idea of their rights and obligations, said Rosenberg.
“What we’re finding is that landlords are treating bed bugs just like any other pest,” said Rosenberg. “But they’re very tenacious and different and you really need professional help to assist.”
Rosenberg is hoping that Chicago’s top spot on Orkin’s list will help push the ordinance through Chicago’s City Council.
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The most vulnerable apartments in cities are in low income housing units, where tenants are more likely to buy used furniture and landlords are prone to be untrained at treating the situation, Rosenberg said.
“It’s very troubling to try to go to sleep in a bed where you know there are bedbugs,” she said. “You feel helpless and frustrated, especially renters with landlords who are doing a bad job.”
Bedbugs start their lives in small, clear eggs that are often difficult to find. Adult bed bugs are shaped like apple seeds. They announce their presence by leaving bites on a person’s skin. Only 40 percent of people get a reaction from bed bug bites, so the critters might go unnoticed, according to Rosenberg.
As the infestation spreads, tenants often need to dispose of clothes and furniture in their houses that might be infected.