Bed bugs attack Paris

Horrified travellers have taken to social media to share videos of bedbugs crawling on train seats, with one clip having been viewed 3.8 million times, as authorities try to combat the spread ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris next summer.

Transport Minister Clement Beaune said he would convene representatives from public transport operators next week "to inform them of the response measures and to implement further measures to protect travellers", according to news.com.au.

France is puzzled by the return of bed bugs.

The news came a day after Emmanuel Gregoire, First Deputy Mayor of Paris, wrote a letter on behalf of City Hall calling on Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne to take action against the "disaster".

"Bed bugs are a public health problem and should be reported as such. The state must urgently bring together all relevant parties to issue an appropriate action plan to deal with this scourge as France prepares to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024," he stressed.

Speaking to French television station LCI last Friday, Mr Gregoire called the phenomenon "common and in fact you can pick up bed bugs anywhere and bring them home".

A woman took to TikTok to lament that she was "so embarrassed" to use public transport in Paris because bedbugs were not only found on metro seats but also in cinemas.

Bedbug on the train seat from Paris to Lille

Earlier in August, a user posted photos showing multiple bedbug bites on his body while at a Paris cinema. UGC Cinemas posted a letter on September 4 apologizing to customers, adding that it was taking emergency measures.

Bed bugs, which largely disappeared from everyday life in the 1950s, have reemerged in recent years, largely due to high population density and more public transportation.

The French capital is the worst hit, with one in 10 French households said to have had a bed bug problem in the past few years, according to AFP. Locals are spending hundreds of dollars on pest control, often needing to repeat the process.

Mr. Gregoire also called on insurance companies to include bed bug coverage in home insurance policies, since low-income people rarely have the means to call pest control companies.

Paris City Hall on Thursday called on President Emmanuel Macron's government for help in stopping the spread of the insect, including setting up a dedicated task force.

Bed bugs found in cracks in sofa in L'Hay-les-Roses near Paris

Meanwhile, RATP, the operator of the Paris metro system, said it was "extremely vigilant about the issue" but had not had any recent sightings, according to CNN.

The company said “every discovery is taken into account and must be addressed,” while denying that “in the past few days, there have been no recorded cases of bed bugs in our equipment.”

In 2020, the French government launched an anti-bedbug campaign, which includes a dedicated website and information hotline.

According to the website, international travel and increasing pesticide resistance are responsible for the resurgence of the species.

France's national health agency advises people to check hotel beds when travelling and to be cautious about bringing old furniture or used mattresses into their homes.

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