Offshore Bedbugs – how do they reach oil rigs in the middle of the ocean?

Offshore Bedbugs – International Travellers

 

Offshore bedbugs cannot fly, they do not have wings. They simply crawl and at a rate of 1 metre per minute. These miniature vampires and international travellers, a plague of the past,  are having a comeback.

But bedbugs can live anywhere, not just beds and mattresses although they do not like to attach themselves to heat sources like hair or skin. They inhabit cracks, furniture, frames, springs and luggage. They could be called “sofabugs” or “suitcasebugs” aswell!

 

TIME Magazine called them the Pest of the Year in 2016 and featured them with a Polaris Scanning Electron Microscope with some amazing results.

http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2019344_2189425,00.html

Offshore bedbugs arrive on offshore platforms, service vessels and flotels attached to clothing, suitcases, backpacks and even shoes. How did they get there in the first place? Cinemas, theaters, trains, hotels, motels, ships, office buildings, gyms, shelters, transport vehicles and a long etc.  are all possible bedbug homes, bedbugs are not picky. Anywhere with a high people/passenger turnover is a target and crowded living quarters help their spreading. Their comeback is due to several factors:

  • Global travel
  • High transit/turnover/populated areas
  • Pesticide resistance

Offshore Bedbug Solutions

 

Pest and beg bug offshore platform controlOffshore bedbugs are not related to sanitary conditions and sanitation alone will not eliminate bedbugs.  For a successful bedbug eradication strategy Pest Management Professionals are essential. We have a detailed knowledge of bedbug biology, hiding locations as well as making a detailed inspection in order to apply a long lasting, effective, safe and legally approved treatment

  • Fumigation
  • Heat treatments
  • Other methods being tested

 

Offshore Bedbug Prevention

 

In general elimination of clutter is a good prevention method as well as inspection of furniture, second hand furniture, bedding, drawers, shelves, carpets and your items whilst packing.

You may find egg shells, shedded skin, fecal stains but you will not really know you have an infestation until you actually see bedbugs.

If an infestation is confirmed, your best shot is to contract a licensed, trained and experienced company. Especially when dealing with an offshore infestation which could derive in expensive business interruption, litigations which are becoming an issue in the US and abroad as well as the stigma that comes along with a bedbug infestation.

 

Offshore Bedbug Reality

 

Bedbugs can carry up to 28 different kinds of pathogens according to some studies but they are not known to transmit diseases.

Being cold-blooded, depending on room temperature they can survive between 3 months and 1 year without feeding by slowing their metabolism. Laying around 1 egg a day which takes around 10 days to hatch and about 5 weeks to become adult gives us an estimate of up to 3 generations of bedbugs in a year! They bite night and day although are most active at night.

We hope you never have to deal with a bedbug infestation, but now you know what to do if you have one:

http://pinedaoffshoreservices.com/services/pest-control/

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