Toronto the Good: Plague of bedbugs hits town, hurts poor most

Toronto Star (Aug6,2k10) by reporter Noor Javed and photo by Carlos Osorio.

Across the city, thousands like Ross, are realizing that the scourge of bedbugs is not limited to social housing, crowded shelters, or low-income dwellings. Bedbugs are quickly becoming everyone’s problem. Pest-control companies in the GTA say they receive four to five calls a week from mortified residents in swanky neighbourhoods, owners of upscale condos and helpless tenants in rental apartments struggling to cope with infestations. And in recent months, hospitals such as William Osler Health Centre in Etobicoke, the Toronto Public Library, and retail stores have joined the list of those battling infestations — which suggests that, despite the best efforts of public health officials, pest-control companies and the afflicted, the city is on its way to a full-scale bedbug crisis.

Last week, in an act of desperation, city officials in New York City declared war on bedbugs, after reports of the pests dramatically increased. In 2009, the city received 33,772 bedbug-related inquires, up from 21,922 in 2008 — a jump of 54 percent. But it has been the growing evidence of the pests in every corner of society — in the changerooms of retail stores, fancy hotels, libraries and even as plot lines in NY-based sitcoms — that pushed city officials to announce a $500,000 initiative that includes the creation of a health department task force, improved tracking tools, protocols for the proper disposal of infested items, and requiring landlords to provide information on infested units to tenants. 

In Toronto, infestation numbers are also rising. In 2003, Toronto Public Health had only 46 reports. In 2008, when TPH set up a self-reporting bedbug hotline, it received 1,324 calls. This year, the city has received 1,076 calls so far and expects hundreds more.

It's a hell of a situation here in Toronto the Good this season, and for as long as the gd bedbugs live.

-- Owlie Scowlie