Bedbug infestation discovered at Horizons West
TONY BROWN/DAILY FORUM
Matt Baker, vice president of student affairs at Northwest Missouri State University, standing on stoop, and Maryville City Manager Greg McDanel, standing on stoop at far right, speak to Horizons West apartment complex residents Thursday with regard to a recently discovered bedbug infestation. The five-building complex, occupied mostly by international students, was evacuated Thursday afternoon.
The city of Maryville and Northwest Missouri State University moved jointly Thursday afternoon to evacuate Horizons West after confirming that the aging five-building residential complex is infested with bedbugs.
City Manager Greg McDanel and Northwest Vice President of Student Affairs Matt Baker addressed a group of about 100 Horizons West residents in the complex’s courtyard at 2 p.m., advising them of the infestation and outlining a plan of action, which includes temporary alternate housing on campus for Northwest students.
Located on private property at 1121 N. College Drive just north of the Northwest Administration Building, Horizons West is home to approximately 150 college students, most of them from India and other South Asian countries. A handful of non-students live there as well.
Residents were told they would have to leave their apartments until the building can be declared free of the tiny bloodsucking parasite.
While university spokesman Mark Hornickel said immediate evacuation was mandatory for students, McDanel said Friday non-student residents choosing to do so would be able to remain in their apartments until extermination efforts get under way.
Northwest students wishing to do so have the option of moving into Phillips Hall, a high-rise dormitory that has been vacant for the past two years. McDanel said plans to assist non-student Horizons West residents are still being worked out.
McDanel said Red Cross assistance for non-students with regard to interim housing is not an option, since the infestation is considered a public nuisance as opposed to a health hazard or emergency.
About a dozen non-students currently live in the 108-unit complex, he said.
Student residents have the option of seeking other housing or checking into Phillips, where procedures were being set up to prevent the infestation from spreading onto campus.
Lt. Mike Ceperley of the Northwest Police Department, who serves as the campus’ emergency management coordinator, said students were advised to report to a check-in area with a change of clothes, which will be laundered before being worn.
After showering and ensuring they are bedbug free, the students will change into the fresh clothes and turn in the clothing they were wearing at the time of the evacuation.
Essentially, Ceperley said, university staff will create “clean” and “dirty” areas inside the dormitory in hopes of containing the infestation.
During the courtyard meeting, Baker emphasized that the Phillips Hall option is voluntary, and that students were free to seek other accommodations.
“You don’t have to stay in campus housing,” Baker said, “But I recommend that you do.”
Baker also told Horizons West students that “no one is in trouble, and no one is in danger” with regard to the infestation, that housing in Phillips was being provided at no charge, and that Northwest was simply seeking their cooperation in the best interests of all concerned
“We need your help to get rid of the bedbugs,” he said. “… Our goal is to make this good for you and good for us.”
While the welfare of the students is Northwest’s responsibility, dealing with the infestation is a matter for City Hall.
McDanel said he has called on both city police and code enforcement personnel to deal with the problem and is currently assessing alternatives. The Nodaway County Health Department is involved as well.
He added that the city has been in touch with the landlord, Bryan Belcher of Des Moines, Iowa, and that Belcher was on his way to Maryville and has been cooperating in efforts to find a solution.
The infestation came to light on Wednesday when someone lodged a complaint with the city, McDanel said. That led officials to request an administrative search warrant, which was served Thursday morning.
McDanel and Baker said they don’t know how long Horizons West will remain empty, and that ridding the buildings of pests could be a matter of days or weeks.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, bedbugs are not considered a public health hazard and are not known to spread disease. They can cause itching and result in excessive scratching that sometimes leads to secondary skin infections.
Bedbugs have been known as human parasites for thousands of years but by the early 1940s were mostly eradicated in the developed world. They have grown in prevalence since 1995, likely due to pesticide resistance.
