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Bedbugs take a bite out of Paris

Bedbugs - the pesky blood-sucking insects wreaking havoc with New York's global image since 2009 - have arrived in the French capital.

http://phil.cdc.gov/phil/Open access
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After having infested New York City landmarks such as the Empire State Building, Carnegie Hall and even UN headquarters, bedbugs are becoming increasingly common in the City of Light, French fumigators say.

Known in French as "punaises de lit," bedbugs were thought to have more or less disappeared in the 1950s. But they seem to have taken advantage of the ban on certain insecticides, such as DDT, and the international travel boom to make their reappearance.

The tenacious critters, brown and barely 5mm long, often hitch rides in suitcases and then take up residence in mattresses, box-springs, bed linen and clothing. They tend to attack at night, leaving itchy, uniform bites.

One fumigator told France Info radio that his phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from bedbug victims "in tiny, unhygenic apartments but also from amazing lofts in beautiful neighbourhoods". Monsieur Marcel pointed out that "bedbugs affect everybody. I'd say that Paris, and even France, is under invasion."

Maybe not yet, but Smash (Municipal Service of Health and Hygiene) has already responded to 600 bed bug calls this year. The City Council has downplayed trhe bedbug threat. But a technician who answered the phone at one local council told France Info they were "doing nothing but" dealing with the little pests.

 

 

 

 

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