Nov 20, 2014 4 min read

Several artists have sung versions of the mournful “Blue Christmas,” but for one Washington retiree, it would likely be dubbed “Blue Thanksgiving.”

She has lived at the Washington County Housing Authority’s Crumrine Tower on South Franklin Street for about five years, and she won’t spend the holiday next week with family at her daughter’s home for fear of bringing along an uninvited guest: Cimex Lectularius, also known as the common bedbug.

“I told them, ‘Bring me a plate of food and I’ll go outside and get it,'” she said sadly.

The 68-year-old tower resident, who declined to give her name, was among those who attended a meeting of the housing authority board Wednesday on the first floor of the building where bedbugs have been a persistent problem for the past few months. Signs and placards warn of the problem.

Adam Witt, vice president of Witt Pest Management of Pittsburgh, gave a presentation on monitoring apartments and treatment if the parasite is detected, but he was likely preaching to many of the same nine concerned people who listened to his talk weeks ago. The six-story tower has about 50 residents in 40 units, and Witt said all the apartments, hallways and common areas will be inspected for bedbugs, and, if warranted, monitoring devices will be placed in rooms. Fifteen units were treated in an attempt to eradicate the pests.

The housing authority paid Witt’s firm $16,000 since October to eradicate the bugs, but they have recurred. Before that, there were sporadic outbreaks in the building, said Stephen Hall, housing authority executive director.

Witt said he never had a customer be as proactive as the authority has been in dealing with a problem.

Despite the word “bed” that’s used to describe them, the critters – about the size, color and shape of an apple seed – and their eggs can infest any furniture, loose wallpaper or wall hangings, electrical receptacles and appliances. Unlike many other insects, bedbugs do not fly. They lurk on a person or inside used furniture, and emerge to feed on the blood of humans and animals. Witt has used heat treatments in apartments to kill the bugs.

“With a unified front, we can really get ahead of these things,” Witt said.

Tony Menendez, president of the housing authority board, complained that a previous story in the Observer-Reporter failed to note that the directors are doing all they can to alleviate the bedbug problem.

Three people who have experienced bedbug infestations were present at the meeting, but they did not want to be identified. “The people who have them are not here,” one apartment-dweller said. The authority is unable to “take somebody by the hand and bring them down here,” Menendez commented.

A tower resident suggested steam cleaning carpets in common areas and asked if treating one apartment will simply cause the bugs to take up residence in a neighboring unit. Witt said his crew would check surrounding units, too.

Marianne Stiles, a retired Washington florist and the sole Crumrine resident at the meeting who was willing to give her name, commended Jim Mason Jr., director of maintenance, for immediately having her apartment inspected when she suspected a scourge. She’d like to see tenants who have recurring infestations be subject to eviction.

“We have to look out for each other,” Stiles said. “We’re a family.”

The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development requires that public housing be subject to a series of inspections. According to HUD’s website, nearly four million Americans live in rental housing that is owned, insured or subsidized by HUD.