Social agency handing out “bed bug suits” as problem explodes

Winnipeg’s bed bug problem is growing at an alarming rate.

Nicole McKay says she can’t live in her North End apartment anymore after discovering her suite was infested with bed bugs.

"We still have to remove everything,” said McKay. “We haven’t touched anything because we were so freaked out."

McKay is so alarmed, she now wears a special protective white suit to prevent bites.

"They were crawling all over the walls,” said McKay. “They were coming out of the baseboards."

Her suite has since been treated but it needs to be done again.

New Directions, a Winnipeg social agency that helps house residents with special needs, says the bed bug problem is getting so worse, that it’s handing out bed bug suits to concerned residents and staff members.

Pest control companies in the city say McKay’s nightmare is all too common as the bed bug population has exploded in Winnipeg.

Poulin’s Pest Control says it received 58 per cent more calls in 2010 compared to 2009.

"We are seeing them everywhere, from single dwelling homes, Manitoba Housing, homeless shelters and hospitals,” said Poulin’s Pest Control’s Lincoln Poulin.

"We’re on the increase, the exponential increase, and until you start literally seeing them everywhere or we find a product that will cover a wide range, we’ll still be seeing bed bugs for a long time to come," said Taz Stuart, Winnnipeg’s Entomologist.

The province says it’s already working with all municipalities to help combat the problem.

Mckay is now looking for a new place to live but says she’s already lost her precious belongings, which now have to be left behind.

"I have to throw out my bed." said Mckay. "And it was brand new."