Bed Bugs Back at UNL's East Campus Apartments

By: Bonney Bowman - Email

Updated: Wed 4:39 AM, Sep 19, 2012

Bed bugs are back at UNL but this time, housing officials say lessons learned from last year's infestation are paying off and keeping the incident isolated.

The bugs were only found in one apartment in the University Park complex on east campus.

Heat treating was effectively used last year, and that's how the university treated the apartment.

It's the first unit to be treated since last spring.

Last year, UNL spent 450-thousand dollars cleaning up an infestation which spread across campus.

Heat treating and the use of bug sniffing dogs were among the lessons learned in last year's infestation.

Another lesson: educating students on how to recognize, and report, a possible outbreak.

This allows the university to respond more quickly.

Housing officials say they're much better prepared with 'a business as usual' approach.

Housing Director Sue Gildersleeve says, "We have a process in place. The students should know what to expect if they report something to us. We can react very quickly and it really shouldn't be a big deal from now on to go in and take care of it."

There have been a few reports of bed bugs in the dorms this year, but so far none of have been found.

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