When people take a business trip, go on vacation, or visit family, they expect wherever they stay to be clean and safe. They certainly don’t expect any living creature besides themselves and their travel companions to be in the hotel room.
Unfortunately, some Las Vegas visitors got more than they bargained for this year. The Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD) reported multiple instances of bed bugs in Las Vegas Strip hotels from February 2024 to August 2024.
Key Highlights
- Bed bug bites cause itchy welts, though they are not usually dangerous.
- Bed bugs were found at Resorts World Las Vegas, Cosmopolitan, Hilton Grand Vacations, and Bellagio.
- A woman filed a lawsuit against the STRAT for bed bug bites during an October 2022 stay.
- A man was stung on the genitals by a scorpion at the Venetian in December 2023.
Even Luxury Hotels Have Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are not usually dangerous, but they are unsettling and can certainly cause adverse reactions in humans. They feed on blood, usually at night. Their bites can cause itchy lesions, but serious reactions are rare.
According to the SNHD, inspectors confirmed bed bugs at Resorts World, following up on a guest complaint from their February 4-8 stay.
Inspectors found bed bugs on the headboard of a room at the Cosmopolitan, a room where people stayed May 14-18.
A guest also complained of bed bugs at the Hilton Grand Vacations in August; the SNHD found the critters upon further inspection.
Bed bugs were also found in a Bellagio hotel room over Christmas 2023, but they were not investigated until February 8, 2024.
Woman Suing the STRAT Over Bed Bug Encounter
Discovering bed bugs is not pleasant, but it’s also nothing new in Las Vegas (or really anywhere around the world).
Last Tuesday, a woman filed a lawsuit against the STRAT Hotel, Casino & Tower for an insect encounter that she says left her with more than just itchy bumps.
But Nailer said that for weeks after, she “suffered terrible itching” and has “permanent scarring” from the bites.
Krystal Nailer claims she woke up one night at the STRAT in October 2022 to find “painful welts on her left leg and buttocks.” She then spotted a bed bug.
Nailer told the front desk, prompting an employee to check the room and file a report. The employee gave her hydrocortisone cream for the itchiness.
But Nailer said that for weeks after, she “suffered terrible itching” and has “permanent scarring” from the bites.
The lawsuit states that she experienced mental trauma and had to replace clothes and other items to try to avoid further contact with possible bed bugs.
It is possible to co-exist with bed bugs without even knowing it, as they can go six months without eating. Thus, people can sleep in the presence of a bed bug and not be bitten.
Scorpion Down the Pants
Bed bugs are bad and, for many, represent unsanitary conditions. But how about something a little scarier? Seeing as it is the spooky season, many I interest you in a scorpion?
Michael Farchi and his family were staying at the Venetian over the Christmas holiday last year when a severe pain woke him up on the morning of December 26.
“I just felt like somebody stabbing me in my private area,” Farchi told KLAS.
He ran to the restroom and saw a small, orange animal attached to his underwear. He had been stung on the genitals by a scorpion.
Farchi took pictures of the underwear scorpion and filed a complaint with the Venetian, indicating that he was in a lot of pain. He and his family checked out the next day, a day earlier than planned.
In September 2024, Farchi filed a lawsuit against the resort, claiming that the incident left him with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and destroyed his sex life.
Sources
https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/inspectors-find-bed-bugs-at-bellagio-cosmopolitan-resorts-world/
https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/las-vegas-hotel-bed-bugs-leave-tourist-with-permanent-scarring-lawsuit-says/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bed_bug
https://www.8newsnow.com/news/local-news/man-stung-in-testicles-by-scorpion-while-sleeping-at-las-vegas-strip-resort-victim-says/
