PHOENIX – Exterminators are waging a growing battle against bed bugs. The blood-sucking pests are now infesting dozens of homes, apartments and public housing units across the valley.
Bed bugs are a growing problem because they spread quickly, crawl from person to person, and are sometimes so small you can’t even see them.
There’s been a rise in bed bugs in the past few months, and experts say the epidemic will only get worse.
“I’d get up in the morning and I’d have these little tiny red spots on me,” says Leona Godfrey. It was bed bugs. Dozens of them were hiding all along the armchair of her couch.
Godfrey lives in Pine Tower, a public housing unit for seniors. So far, Phoenix has seen 28 cases of bed bugs in 3,500 public housing units.
Burns Pest Control says they get calls every day about bed bugs. You can get bed bugs from traveling, buying used furniture, or from house guests who carry bed bugs. They feed on blood.
Bed bugs aren’t known for causing disease but cleaning an infested home is tough — what’s even tougher is the stigma attached to it.
The County Health Department lists hotels and apartment complexes that have had problems with bed bugs.
Source: myFOXphoenix.com
