Exterminator Muddles School Bed Bug Removal

Many would think having a school filled with bedbugs was bad enough, but parents and teachers at P.S. 197 are outraged after an exterminator over-zealously attacked the problem, leaving poison and destruction everywhere.

According to a WABC report, the school, at 1599 East 22nd Street, recently discovered a possible bed bug infestation. But the exterminator they hired, listed as Joe’s Extermination Company, ended up spraying the smelly poison on desks, books, floors and more.

The decontamination is estimated to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars on top of the $100,000 already paid for extermination.

Parents are worried about their children’s health, while educators are wondering if the materials they lost will be replaced for the rest of the school year.