Pests on the prowl: Battle of the bugs

Blood-sucking bedbugs found in congested neighbourhoods and labour camps have jumped the social barrier by moving to upmarket localities and five star hotels, Dubai Municipality and private pest control experts have said.

Bedbugs and cockroaches account for a number of complaints and pest control agencies have noticed rising infestations of these pests in localities such as Karama, Deira and Bur Dubai as well as the posh communities of Jumeirah and Al Barsha.

Hydra-headed enemy

Pest control officials said that they are fighting a hydra-headed enemy as infestation is spreading fast. This has prompted Dubai Municipality to plan testing the resistance of bugs to available pesticides. “I've seen bedbugs even in a mosque,'' said Motahar Hussain, Head of Technical Services at the Pest Control Section, Dubai Municipality.

Bedbugs thrive within a few feet of the bed and breed in headboards, mattresses, bedsheets, box springs, side tables and curtains. “They are notoriously tough to control – they hide in linen and clothing – all the way to the laundry shop,'' said Filemon Samiley, Operations Manager of East Coast Services, a 25-year-old pest control company, one of the 79 in Dubai.

Samiley said they get two bug-related complaints a week from hotels, including five-star properties. “No single method exists that can completely eliminate them,'' said Samiley.

James Nicholson of National Pest Control, one of Dubai's biggest pest control firms, echoed the sentiment: “It's not usually reported by hotels because it's an image thing but we've seen bedbugs arising in hotels here. This is a worldwide phenomenon.

Food source

“They tend to breed close to a food source, which is us, human beings. Some hotel chains have a policy that when they see a bedbug in a room, the mattress is disposed of and replaced.''

The increase in service calls for pest control is due to population growth and better public awareness, said Hesham Al Yahya, Head of Dubai Municipality's Public Health Pest Control Section. “We encourage the public to call the Dubai Municipality hotline about any pest-related events they encounter.''

Dubai Municipality figures show pest infestation has risen steadily alongside a spike in population. Complaints about bedbugs received by the municipality grew by 34 per cent from 112 in the month of April 2006 to 150 in April this year, the latest comparative data available (it increased more than seven-fold from the figures recorded in April 1992).

Although no industry data exists on the extent of overall pest infestation in Dubai, Dubai Municipality figures show that the total number of monthly complaints increased significantly. For example, pest-related complaints nearly tripled from 1,664 in the month of April in 1992 to 4,676 complaints in April this year. During this period, Dubai's population roughly doubled to about 1.4 million.

But municipality figures are just the tip of the iceberg.

Jumeirah Pest Control (JPC), a 30-year-old company, said up to half of 600 of service calls they get each month relate to bedbugs. “Once they [bedbugs] are established, they are very difficult to control,'' said Suraj Palayat, JPC's Technical Manager.

Similarly, Al Mobidoon Pest Control and Cleaning Services, which has six teams doing about 1,000 pest control jobs per month, said 40 per cent of calls they get from 10 labour camps (with more than 11,000 workers) have to do with bedbugs.

Janardan Ramankutty, Operat- ions Manager of Al Mobidoon, said that after treatment, they advise labourers to strip down the rooms and discard damaged mattresses. But not everyone follows the advice. “We do get calls now and then from hotels, including five-star properties,'' said Ramankutty.

Some pest control companies avoid treating labour camps altogether. “Each room in a camp would have six to eight people. You can't treat a room when some off-duty labourers are asleep, so we skip those rooms to come back another day,'' said Celso Santos of CS Pest Control. “Then we get numerous calls for repeat jobs. It's a headache.''

Experts blame humans for infestation that is reaching alarming levels in many high-density cities around the world.

A throw-away lifestyle and laziness help pests such as roaches and bugs to thrive, said Dr Walid Kaakeh, a pest management expert and consultant for Intec Europe, a waste management company operating in the UAE.

Dr Kaakeh, who is a former professor at UAE University, said: “In a high-rise building you don't know your neighbour, who is below or above you. Even if you have clean premises your neighbours may not. More people mean more garbage and more pests. But if you have a good cleaning system, no bug, cockroach, ant or pest infestation can last.''

He called for greater awareness to combat public health risks posed by pests. “Cockroaches and rats are carriers of serious diseases. They adulterate food. Roaches carry salmonella, dysentery, gastroenteritis and spread pathogenic organisms with their faeces and secretions.''

Ill-trained operators

While a well-equipped department in Dubai Municipality is on the frontline of the war against pests, private companies handle a significantly large number of complaints from non-Emiratis and commercial establishments. As a result of this, harmful insecticides and pesticides have been left in the hands of some ill-trained and ill-equipped operators.

And some cleaning companies have been caught offering pest control jobs without a licence. Dubai Municipality has slapped fines of up to Dh5,000 for critical offences and has on occasion shut down operations.

The number of violations by pest control companies has gone up from 11 in 2006 to 57 in 2008. In the first five months of 2009, 47 violations have already been recorded, according to Ali Obaid Bakheet, a senior pest control officer at Dubai Municipality.

PEST CONTROL TIPS

• For bedbugs – Strip down the room – bedcover, mattress, pillow case, curtains
• Chemical treatment should be the last option in homes.
• Seek help from professionals when using chemicals
• Ask for licence card of pest control staff before allowing them to treat your place
• Steam can kill eggs of all insects – including bedbugs and roaches. Vacuum the room to remove dead bugs and eggs
• Avoid using chemicals indoors. Instead, use traps or gel or steam/hot water to kill roaches/bugs, or clear drainage of flies. Use plant oil repellent such as boric acid
• Regularly wash couch and bedcovers. For bedbug control, wash covers with hot water (60 degrees C)

You speak

• Have you had problems with any of these pests?
• How often do you pest control your home?
• What is the main reason behind the rapid spread of these pests?

Tell us what you think.

• news@alnisrmedia.com
• www.xpress4me.com
  
  SMS 6361