Pilot suffers over 80 bedbug bites at local hotel amid lack of regulation

IDAHO FALLS — A corporate pilot staying overnight at an Idaho Falls hotel says he was ravaged by bedbugs, causing over 80 large, itchy red welts.

Jack C. checked into his room at the FairBridge Inn & Suites in Idaho Falls on Wednesday night. It was late and he went straight to bed.

“We arrived at the FairBridge Inn and Suites around 11:30 p.m. or midnight and just got in the bed to crash,” Jack tells EastIdahoNews.com. “When I got up the next day, I noticed the bugs and took a short video as well as some photographs… and reported it to the front desk, who seemed to be unfazed.”

According to Jack, he contacted the health department and was startled to learn Idaho does not regulate bedbugs. Additionally, the state does not inspect hotels for the irritating insects after reports are made.

“On average, I am in hotels eight months out of the year, have been flying for over a decade, and have never been in contact with bedbugs,” says Jack. “The scary thing is that it spreads like that. I check out, throw my bag in the airplane and go to the next destination.”

EastIdahoNews.com verified Jack’s stay at the FairBridge Inn & Suites through a confirmation email he received from the hotel.

We reached out to FairBridge Inn & Suites to ask about the situation and were told we needed to contact the chain’s corporate office. We sent an email to an email address given to us but it bounced back, so we called again to confirm the spelling. An additional email was also returned as undeliverable.

EastIdahoNews.com tried to send a message on the corporate website, but the send button did not work. We attempted to call FairBridge Hotels International in Spokane, Washington multiple times, but the phone number listed on the company’s website was not valid.

We also tried to call and email the director of public relations for FairBridge Hotels, as listed on Business Travel News, and that email and phone number are not functioning.

What are the laws?

EastIdahoNews.com investigated whether Idaho hotels must legally follow any bedbug regulations — and the answer is no.

Although the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture all consider bedbugs a public health pest, Idaho does not identify them as an public health issue.

“Bedbugs are generally not considered a public health problem because they are not known to spread disease,” says AJ McWhorter, spokesman for Idaho Department of Health and Welfare in an email. “They are certainly a concern to the public because they might cause itching and loss of sleep and have a definite ‘gross factor.'”

But, local and state public health agencies are not responsible for investigating hotel bedbug reports — even if guests are bit.

“In Idaho, public health agencies have no legal oversight of hotel operations except for retail food service in the hotel or if there is a situation that could result in immediate harm (e.g., hazardous chemical spill),” says McWhorter. “If there are concerns regarding sanitation or cleanliness of the property that are reported to local public health districts, the environmental health specialists in those agencies may follow up and provide recommendations to the hotel to remediate concerns but we have no authority to take action with regard to cleanliness.”

According to the EPA, 21 states have some level of law or regulation regarding bedbugs. Idaho is not one of them.

Chicago passed an ordinance in 2013 that requires every business licensed by the city to provide pest control services when a bedbug problem occurs and prohibits hotels from renting rooms with a bedbug problem.

Nevada also passed a similar ordinance, stating, “Any room in any hotel in this state that is or shall be infested with vermin or bedbugs or similar things shall be thoroughly fumigated, disinfected, and renovated until such vermin or bedbugs or other similar things are entirely exterminated.”

The reason for the lack of regulation seems to be that treatment for bedbug infestations is expensive, and the insects can be difficult to get rid of for good.

According to Falls Pest Services in Idaho Falls, bedbugs often just get pushed to another area when people try to eradicate them on their own, instead of actually killing them.

“The reason they’re hard to get rid of is because people will use over-the-counter self treatment options, which most of the time, that actually makes them worse,” says Rein Weil with Falls Pest Services. “It actually pushes them into the walls, where they continue breeding. Once that product is no longer active, they come out full force.”

Bedbugs also breed very quickly, every 10 days according to Weil, making it hard to know if you’ve actually gotten rid of every last one.

“Local public health departments have very limited resources to combat this problem, and bedbugs frequently are not seen as a priority,” according to the CDC. “Municipal codes struggle to identify those responsible for control of bedbug infestations. Tenants and landlords often dispute who is ultimately responsible for the cost of control and treatment.”

What are bedbugs – and can they hurt me?

Bedbugs are known as hitchhikers, insects that are great at traveling from one place to another, often residing on used furniture, luggage, and small areas like wall cracks and crevices. For someone like a pilot, bedbugs can be a huge concern.

“Bedbugs are small, flat insects. Bedbugs bite people and animals at night while they sleep, feeding on their blood,” according to the CDC. “Bedbugs are reddish-brown in color, are wingless, and range from 1mm to 7mm in size (roughly the size of Lincoln’s head on a penny). They can live several months without a blood meal.”

Bedbugs die at very high and very low temperatures, so to exterminate them from an area, professionals are usually needed, especially in a commercial residence like a hotel.

“Because most bedbugs die when exposed to high temperatures, you can prevent infestation by drying clothes, sheets and other fabrics on a high heat setting,” says Southeastern Idaho Public Health. “You can also prevent bedbugs by vacuuming frequently, using mattress and furniture protectors, and sealing cracks and crevices.”

But just because you find a bedbug when you’re traveling, doesn’t mean it’s the hotel’s fault.

“You can find bedbugs anywhere, from North and South America, to Africa, Asia and Europe. Bedbugs are in five-star hotels and resorts,” according to the CDC. “How clean a place is does not determine whether bedbugs are present.”

If you do find bedbugs in your hotel room, officials recommend you report it to the hotel immediately so they are aware. You should then try to make other accommodations.

As for Jack, he says he will be finding other accommodations from here on out during his trips to Idaho Falls.

“I went to an Urgent Care to see what they could do. The doctor came in my room in a paper hazmat suit and told me that there is nothing they can do for me,” says Jack. “I will never stay nor recommend that hotel to anybody. Primarily because they’re dirty, but also because of their lack of concern about this experience. I would hate to know how many other people this has happened to that didn’t realize or report them.”