An isolated incident of bedbugs on the fourth floor of Brookside Hall occurred in one of the apartment style rooms two weeks ago.
The situation pushed the University of Rhode Island’s pest control vendor, Debug Pest Control, to remove all bedding on the floor to be washed, according to Tim Valton, associate director of facilities for URI Housing and Residential Life.
Debug completed all the extermination and cleaning procedures, according to Valton. Since the incident two weeks ago, there have been no recent signs of bugs.
URI initiated a series of follow-up appointments to ensure the eradication of the bed bugs, according to Valton. The appointments have had positive results and that there are no signs of remaining pests.
“The last inspection showed that there were no live [bed bugs] or exoskeletons of bed bugs or anything like that, which is excellent,” Valton said.
Housing and Residential Life has worked closely with Debug, and this relationship has allowed the treatment of the bedbug case to happen smoothly, according to Valton.
“What is really good is that our vendor comes in really quickly,” Valton said. “As long as the student can report [pests] those [cases] are prioritized, [Debug is] typically here within the next business day to inspect and verify and develop a treatment plan.”
Debug responded by treating the affected space and implementing precautionary measures for the surrounding area, according to Valton.
While the university followed established protocols, the response and communication left some students with concerns.
Bernadette Enriquez, a fourth-year student living on the third-floor of Brookside, said she was unaware of the incident until hearing about it from a friend. Although this incident didn’t affect her floor directly, she was frustrated by the lack of communication from Brookside Hall or Housing and Residential Life.
“I didn’t get any [communication],” Enriquez said. “Maybe I got an email, but those get buried really fast for me.”
Not even her Residential Assistant was informed of the incident, according to Enriquez.
“We should know about it, because we sleep there,” Enriquez said. “I want to know what’s going on in my building.”
Enriquez said she’d always been notified of any hygiene or pest issues all the time when she lived in Heathman Hall. She has not received the same communication from Brookside.
Valton said the mental impact of such incidents can have a bad effect on students.
“From an emotional perspective, I know from the occupants, [evacuations] [are] kind of a pain in the neck, because you have to be out of the space for a couple hours, while they treat it,” Valton said. “ What is really good is that our vendor comes in really quickly when it comes to that.”
Valton also said that these instances are a rarity, saying through his four year tenure he hasn’t had any pest incidents at Brookside.
“I think that it takes a community wide effort to do it. So just keeping your room clean goes a long way.” Valton said.
Valton said students should keep their doors closed to avoid any unwanted pests such as ants, bed bugs and mice from having a reason to stay within the residential halls.
Students should report any pest related issues to HRL so it can be acted on quickly, according to Valton.
To report any housing issues, contact the Office of Housing and Residential Life directly at 401-874-4151 or housing@uri.edu, or use the URI My Housing portal to chat or find resources.
