ELYRIA, Ohio — Some tenants living at the Sherwood Forest Apartments in Elyria report they are in the midst of a bed bug battle that has left them with bites and living on edge since mid-May.
The tenants, who were too afraid to be identified, said apartment management has been responsive, but thus far extermination efforts over the past several weeks have produced few results and plenty of frustration.
“It’s not my lifestyle, I don’t live like that, so it’s very disgusting to live in it and have to be living in it for this long," a tenant said. “So I thought it was mosquitoes, I thought it was a spider, I didn’t know what it was. So I just started freaking out, I’m like, I can’t be living in this, this is disgusting, this is nasty. Actually at first they weren’t even going to spray my apartment when they said they were going to, they were going to wait another week. I said it needs to be taken care of now, I said this has gotten out of hand, I’m like 'I’m going to work bitten up.'”
Sherwood Forest management responded quickly to our story and said the bed bug problem started when another tenant brought the bugs into the building and didn't report the incident. Management said by the time the bed bugs were discovered, the infestation had already struck multiple apartment units.
Sherwood Forest management said it has already performed two exterminator treatments at the affected building and plans to apply a third treatment on July 6.
Scott Pozna, Environmental Health Supervisor with the Lorain County Public Health said that tenants shouldn't panic, that bed bugs can't spread disease on their own like mosquitoes.
Pozna said timely reporting of bed bugs to apartment management and a qualified exterminator is crucial
“So often times a few bed bugs can turn into an infestation," Pozna said. “If you’re treating unit 'A' there’s bed bugs that are viable in units 'B,' 'C' and 'D,' and they’ll be back in 'A.' Often times people who have bed bugs will use pesticides that are for outdoor use indoors, which can cause long lasting problems.”
Lorain County Public Health said in recent years issues with bed bugs have receded locally, but said it's still a significant problem, sharing comprehensive bed bug information on its webpage.
