As if I needed another reason NOT to go back to New York City, now there's this:
Bedbugs are back and spreading through New York City like a swarm of locusts on a lush field of wheat.Posted by Alan at November 26, 2005 05:37 PMInfestations have been reported sporadically across the United States over the past few years. But in New York, bedbugs have gained a foothold all across the city.
"It's becoming an epidemic," said Jeffrey Eisenberg, the owner of Pest Away Exterminating, an Upper West Side business that receives about 125 bedbug calls a week, compared with just a handful five years ago. "People are being tortured, and so am I. I spend half my day talking to hysterical people about bedbugs."
Last year the city logged 377 bedbug violations, up from just 2 in 2002 and 16 in 2003. Since July, there have been 449. "Its definitely a fast-emerging problem," said Carol Abrams, spokeswoman for the city housing agency.