Two videos posted Tuesday on Facebook by Bayonne Alerts and What’s Happening Now appear to show the presence of bed bugs in the Bayonne Housing Authority’s senior building at Avenue A and 23rd Street.
The videos were sent to the social media news outlet by “a concerned resident’ according to the site. The short videos show a common hallway, walls, an elevator, the floor and the doors to apartment units. If you look closely, you can see something on the walls and on the floor.
A portion of the post reads, “This is absolutely horrible and disgusting. The entire senior building is completely infested with bed bugs. The seniors are getting bit alive and they were told when this was reported to the City Of Bayonne that there is nothing they can do about it. They refuse to send an exterminator or help the seniors at all with this appalling situation. I guess the so called mayor only cares about the senior residents during election time. The health department was also notified and again they told them there is nothing they can do.”
In a telephone interview with Hudson TV this morning, Bayonne Housing Authority Executive Director John Mahon termed the videos “inaccurate.” He said there is no way to know when the videos were shot. However, Mahon did say the Housing Authority “takes this seriously.”
The Housing Authority did see something on the videos which prompted it to send a contracted exterminator to the building yesterday to do a complete inspection. They knocked on doors in order to speak with tenants and did a complete walkthrough of the multi-story building. He said any signs of bugs were taken care of.
Mahon says the 50 buildings under the Housing Authority’s purview receive monthly inspections by a licensed exterminator. Yesterday’s inspection was in addition to the normal inspections.
Mahon advices tenants who have any concerns, or who see bugs, rodents or other vermin in any Housing Authority building, to immediately call the Authority at (201) 339-8700. The situation will immediately be addressed.
The Bayonne Housing Authority oversees 1,275 total apartment units.
