For control of bedbugs, lightly apply the recommended insecticide to the sides and seams of all mattresses, which are best treated by folding and placing them in the center of the bunk at a 45° angle. Also treat other areas such as cracks and corners of bunks and empty lockers, springs, canvas bottoms and grommets, stanchions, and behind all equipment close to bulkheads. Bunks may be made up and occupied after 4 hours of ventilation following application. Complete control should be expected in 10 to 14 days.
COCKROACHES.— Cockroaches are the most common and persistently troublesome arthropod pest encountered indoors. They are among the most adaptable insects known and may be found in structures noted for high sanitary standards. Numerous pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and protozoa have been isolated from cockroaches and their feces. Because of their habits and close association with man, they are well-adapted for mechanical transmission of disease. Among the many different kinds of cockroaches that infest habitations are the German, American, and Australian cockroaches. They breed rapidly in the presence of food and warmth, shun the light, and are most active at night. During the day they tend to hide in cracks and other concealed places.
Cockroach infestations can be eliminated with high level sanitary measures coupled with a thorough chemical control program.
Active food preparation areas cannot be kept clean enough to eliminate existing cockroach populations by starvation; however, the following should be kept in mind:
1. Store food so it is inaccessible to cockroaches.
2. Place garbage and other refuse in containers with tight-fitting lids.
3. Thoroughly clean all food preparation areas, utensils, and equipment after each day’s use.
4. Restrict food from berthing areas.
5. Cleanliness reduces available food for cockroaches. As the level of sanitation increases, the level of infestation decreases.
6. Conduct biweekly search and destroy programs. (Spray cracks and crevices with aerosol insecticides; if cockroaches appear, spray with the recommended insecticide.) Do not survey roaches on one day and treat identified sites on another day.
Prevent entry of cockroaches by inspecting ship’s stores items such as bagged potatoes and onions, bottle cases, and food packages prior to storage or use; also inspect the contents of seabags. The elimination of harborages reduces insect populations, making the chemicals more effective.
Typical harborages include old and torn insulation; holes for plumbing and electrical lines as well as electrical switches and fuse boxes; areas between walls; areas behind drawers, oven hoods, under counters and serving lines; hollow areas in equipment and motor housings of refrigerators, mixers, milk machines, etc.
Effective chemical control goes hand in hand with sanitation. Check current instructions, especially NAVMEDCOMINST 6250.13 series, and your local preventive medicine unit or DVECC for recommended chemicals and application procedures. Residual applications should be made to cracks, crevices, and other harborages where cockroaches have been found during surveys. Create barriers by applying a band of insecticide residue around all areas (excluding food preparation areas) that cockroaches must cross to reach food or to travel from place to place. Use insecticide baits in fuse boxes, electrical outlets, around stoves, ovens, heaters, refrigeration units, food vending machines, behind false bulkheads, and in enclosed motor areas. Baits are used in all locations where liquids may cause electrical shorting or fires. If used properly, aerosols can also be very effective.
MITES.— Some mite species cause dermatitis in man and a few transmit scrub typhus, a severe and debilitating rickettsial disease endemic in some areas of the Far East (i.e., Japan).
Parasitic mites include the well-known scabies or itch mite. The scabies mite is transmitted by close body contact and may appear wherever social conditions cause excessive crowding of people. This mite burrows into the horny layer of the dermis, causing intense itching, especially at night.
Personnel operating in endemic scrub typhus areas where chiggers (larvae) constitute a health hazard should be required to use repellents and repellent-impregnated clothing. Locations that are to be used as camp sites should be prepared as fully as possible before the arrival of occupying units. Ensure that all vegetation is cut down or bulldozed to ground level and burned or hauled away. When troops must live or maneuver for periods of time in chigger-infested areas, it is recommended that area control with residual