Bed bugs put the bite on Ryerson students
TORONTO (CUP) -- Students in Ryerson University's Pitman Hall residence have been getting an itch lately -- complete with little pimply, bumpy bites and a red rash.
“It's like a mosquito bite except it doesn't stop itching once you scratch it,” said Angela Kovacs, a first-year student, of her bed bug bites. “It bleeds. It's like a really bad rash.”
Three weeks ago, Kovacs and her roommate started getting “random itchy bites” all over their upper bodies -- hands, arms, shoulders, neck, and chest.
“We thought about how we could all have the same thing, and figured out the only place we'd ever been in contact with each other together was on our living room couches,” said Kovacs. “I was worried.”
This isn't the first time bugs have set down roots in Ryerson's residences. Last spring, a similar attack happened a few flights up, when residents on the 12th floor found ants on their furniture and in their fridges.
In 2004, several rooms in another residence were invaded, an infestation that took months and countless fumigations to control.
Immediately after identifying their couches as the pest problem, Kovacs' roommate filed a report with the housing department, she said.
But Kovacs, frustrated with the never-ending itch, wasn't willing to wait for the paperwork to process.
“I went down and spoke to them in person about my concern,” she said. “I wasn't about to live in an apartment that was infected with bugs.”
Less than two hours later, maintenance went up to the suite, inspected the couches, and came back with spray to disinfect the entire area. Twenty-four hours later, the crew returned to ensure the pests were gone.
But they weren't. The bugs came back.
“My roommate got bitten even after the exterminators came in with the treatment,” she said.
Glen Weppler, student housing services manager, said the level of bed bugs reported in Ryerson residences is lower than other buildings in Toronto.
“Our building is safe," he said. "We do whatever we can as soon as possible to fix a problem once it is brought to our attention.”
Students have been finding themselves rooming with these pests more and more in the past five years, said Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, a pest-control specialist for Toronto Public Health. Since 2001, Toronto has seen an increase in the bed bug population.
“Bed bugs require humans to live, and in an urban centre like Toronto, their sustenance is readily available,” said Gangloff-Kauffman.
One of their favourite breeding grounds: between the cushions of couches.
And since the bed bugs still seem to be biting, Kovacs has been avoiding lounging in her living room.
“I'm afraid to sit on my couches,” said Kovacs. “I plan on filing another report. I can't even live in my living room anymore.”
“It's like a mosquito bite except it doesn't stop itching once you scratch it,” said Angela Kovacs, a first-year student, of her bed bug bites. “It bleeds. It's like a really bad rash.”
Three weeks ago, Kovacs and her roommate started getting “random itchy bites” all over their upper bodies -- hands, arms, shoulders, neck, and chest.
“We thought about how we could all have the same thing, and figured out the only place we'd ever been in contact with each other together was on our living room couches,” said Kovacs. “I was worried.”
This isn't the first time bugs have set down roots in Ryerson's residences. Last spring, a similar attack happened a few flights up, when residents on the 12th floor found ants on their furniture and in their fridges.
In 2004, several rooms in another residence were invaded, an infestation that took months and countless fumigations to control.
Immediately after identifying their couches as the pest problem, Kovacs' roommate filed a report with the housing department, she said.
But Kovacs, frustrated with the never-ending itch, wasn't willing to wait for the paperwork to process.
“I went down and spoke to them in person about my concern,” she said. “I wasn't about to live in an apartment that was infected with bugs.”
Less than two hours later, maintenance went up to the suite, inspected the couches, and came back with spray to disinfect the entire area. Twenty-four hours later, the crew returned to ensure the pests were gone.
But they weren't. The bugs came back.
“My roommate got bitten even after the exterminators came in with the treatment,” she said.
Glen Weppler, student housing services manager, said the level of bed bugs reported in Ryerson residences is lower than other buildings in Toronto.
“Our building is safe," he said. "We do whatever we can as soon as possible to fix a problem once it is brought to our attention.”
Students have been finding themselves rooming with these pests more and more in the past five years, said Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, a pest-control specialist for Toronto Public Health. Since 2001, Toronto has seen an increase in the bed bug population.
“Bed bugs require humans to live, and in an urban centre like Toronto, their sustenance is readily available,” said Gangloff-Kauffman.
One of their favourite breeding grounds: between the cushions of couches.
And since the bed bugs still seem to be biting, Kovacs has been avoiding lounging in her living room.
“I'm afraid to sit on my couches,” said Kovacs. “I plan on filing another report. I can't even live in my living room anymore.”
