I do not live out west where the devastating fires are continuing, and that doesn’t mean I’m not impacted. All of us will be in some way or another. There are numerous ways disasters like these affect us from a pest control standpoint.
First and probably most obvious, like (sane) people, pests will move away from the fire. That often means closer to homes and businesses that are less at risk. Insects and rodents will be forced out of their usual habitats and come in closer contact with people and structures.
Second, pest food sources and habitats will be destroyed. Just like people, they will need to search out new homes and new foods. Once again, driving them to populated areas that aren’t currently on fire.
Third, people will move them around. Pests like bed bugs and German cockroaches, which live quite comfortably in our homes, will travel with people to a nearby shelter, hotel, or friend's house. Pests like rodents, ants, and others can hitchhike on our vehicles to safer areas.
After the fires have been dealt with, pest activity can still increase. Because huge swaths of land have been burnt and leveled to the ground, this can create new habitats and food sources for pests. The first rain will create puddles and streams that mosquitoes will take advantage of. Bare ground can be inviting to ants who need a new home.
Take this a little further, and food safety is impacted by the fires. Smoke can obviously damage foods, and wildfire smoke contains particles from burned synthetic materials (plastic, rubber, etc.) that are small enough to enter common food packaging. Since wildfire smoke is picked up by air currents, it can affect people far from the actual burning fires. This makes water unsafe as well since it can penetrate through the caps. So the insects traipsing through the ash particulates will spread those around.
Power outages, extra food waste, and damaged buildings are at risk for pests spreading food-borne pathogens. As food spoils with no refrigeration, pests will feed on it and start to spread those pathogens around. Waste doesn’t get picked up as often, or at all, so spoiled food will sit there, inviting rodents, cockroaches, and more to feast away. Without power, doors and windows stay open and this lack of exclusion brings pests closer to our homes and businesses. Once again bringing diseases with them.
We’re not done yet! The extreme heat from fires will warp seals and damage food packaging. That’s an open call for pests to feed on those items, especially since their “old” food sources are now gone. As they feed on that spoiled and contaminated food, they pass along the pathogens to all other surfaces they may touch.
Go a little further out and foods have to be delivered to areas that have lost their grocery stores, big box companies, and farmers markets. The further food has to be transported, the more at risk it is for pests and diseases they can carry. Warehouses and distribution centers that once housed foods are damaged, lacking power, and filled will contamination so foods now have to be stored in secondary locations that were never intended (or safe) for food use.
Whether you are in the dangerous fire zones or states away, you can still be impacted by pest issues created by these conditions. A tiered system of pest control will be necessary to deal with the issues occurring now as a direct result of the fires, the different pest problems as cleanup and repairs are done, and new preventative and reactionary plans once the emergency has ended. It doesn’t matter if you are a huge food processing facility, a small corner grocery store, a home, or an apartment complex. Pest control plans will need to change to adapt to the new post-wildfire conditions. We can do that for you. Contact us.
In the meantime, stay safe out there.
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