Pitt deals with minor bed bug problem

Pitt found a minor bed bug problem in two dormitories at the University and has cleaned the… Pitt found a minor bed bug problem in two dormitories at the University and has cleaned the affected rooms.

Initially, Pitt had reports of three rooms with bedbugs at Pitt: two in Sutherland Hall East and one in Lothrop Hall, according to Pitt spokesman John Fedele. He said that the number of bugs was minimal.

The University inspected Sutherland Hall East and found an additional 28 rooms with signs of the bugs, although none were visible. All of the rooms with bugs have since been cleaned, and Fedele said that Pitt will continue precautionary treatment.

Guillermo Cole, the spokesman for the Allegheny County Health Department, said that they have had an increasing number of calls about bed bugs in recent years.

He said that while it was possible to handle the bugs in a single unit residential setting, if it is in an apartment building or dormitory “then it is time to bring in the professionals.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control’s website, bed bugs are a parasitic insect that feeds on humans and animals while they sleep. They are between one and seven millimeters long, flat and cannot fly.

The website said the insects are an inconvenience and do not carry diseases.

Signs of the bugs include exoskeletons in the bed or the bugs themselves in folds of the bedding. An infested area might also have a musty smell to it, according to the website.

No one in other residence halls had reported problems with bed bugs, and Fedele encouraged students to report suspected bed bugs quickly so that the University could deal with them.