Tri-Cities school finds bed bugs. Precautions being taken

Jefferson Elementary School in Richland is addressing a recent discovery of bed bugs, according to Richland School District officials.

“It is a serious issue because we don’t want it to spread, and it hasn’t spread,” said district spokesman Ty Beaver.

The bed bugs have been found in a particular area of the school, and rooms where the bugs are more likely to be are checked as needed and extra cleaning is being done, he said.

The district also is working on prevention of bed bugs being brought into the school on George Washington Way.

Staff are doing a good job of reporting anything of concern to the district office, he said.

Bed bugs have been spreading rapidly in parts of the United States and Canada in recent years, according to the Centers of Disease Control.

Bed bug infestations usually occur in and around where people sleep, but can be transported from place to place, including by hiding in bags and folded clothing, according to the CDC.

They are most often spread when people travel and spend the night away from home.

The bugs are experts at hiding, with slim flat bodies that are roughly the size of Lincoln’s head on a penny. They are reddish brown and wingless.

They bite people and animals to feed on blood, but are not known to spread disease, according to the CDC.

This story was originally published November 15, 2019 at 12:38 PM.