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New Westminster Public Library to re-open at noon today
New Westminster, BC – The New Westminster Public Library will re-open to the public at noon today. The library was closed yesterday following the detection of bed bugs in the collection.
“We are very pleased to report that as a result of quick action by library staff and the work of pest control personnel, including the use of a bed bug sniffing dog and handler, New Westminster Public Library is able to open at noon today,” said Chief Librarian Julie Spurrell.
Following the report of bed bug incidents in the Burnaby Public Library system, NWPL staff had remained vigilant with regular checks of the collection for the presence of bed bugs. Late Monday afternoon, a live bed bug and several dead ones were found in an area of the library’s collection. These books were immediately removed from the shelves, sealed in plastic bags and disposed of outside the building. As a precaution, the library was closed for the day on Tuesday, October 25th, while staff met with a pest control company to map out a strategy to deal with the problem
Late Tuesday afternoon, a bed bug sniffing dog and handler worked with pest control to search the library for further bed bug evidence. Bed bugs were found in four additional books and they were removed. Pest control then conducted a physical inspection of the area adjacent to where these were found and no further bed bugs were detected. As a precaution, a large area around the collection was treated with high heat steam and pest control conducted a physical inspection of all shelving and furnishings. No further evidence was found.
“I would like to sincerely thank our valued library users for their patience and understanding yesterday as we dealt with this issue,” said Spurrell. “Even though we’ve been given the all clear, we will remain vigilant and will be including regular checks and inspections by pest control in our library maintenance program. Library staff look forward to welcoming everyone back to the library at noon today.”
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Contact: Julie Spurrell, Chief Librarian