Bedbug outbreak said to be under control

The spread of bedbugs around the University of Nebraska-Lincoln housing system appears to be slowing down, after reports from UNL Housing yesterday of no new cases.

All the rooms with confirmed cases have been treated, Housing Director Sue Gildersleeve announced on a special website set up to address the problem.  

The parasitic insects, about one-third the width of a dime, were first found on Jan. 6 by two roommates in Abel Hall. By Jan. 20, UNL Housing confirmed the bugs' presence in The Village. Three days later, reports spread to a handful of rooms in Abel and Selleck Hall, where a single, dead bedbug was found in a dorm.

Reports in The Courtyards were proven a false alarm, while Phi Delta Theta fraternity continues to investigate its own reports.

UNL Housing has faced criticism for its handling of the problem, with some, including the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board, charging it took too long to release information on the bugs' prevalence.

Bedbugs travel like ticks, hitching a ride on the clothing of an unsuspecting student. But they can also survive without food for several months, making the origins in the outbreak unclear. Keith Zaborowski, associate director of Housing Residence Life, has stated he's confident the bugs weren't present before students moved in.

The nocturnal insects typically hide near beds in crevices and folds, becoming active at night in pursuit of the blood of sleeping humans.

The university has hired exterminators to deal with them. Pesticides are usually enough, according to Housing, but heating the room to 120 degrees will kill the bugs if chemicals prove insufficient. Housing has also assured students that it will help clean and launder their rooms' contents if bedbugs are confirmed.

Housing continues to urge students who suspect bedbugs in their rooms to tell their resident assistant or dorm front desk.

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