A woman was hospitalized after a medical emergency turned into a health and safety inspection in her Central Lubbock home Thursday.
Lubbock Fire Rescue responded to the home at the 4900 block of 38th Street early Thursday afternoon. Crews discovered a bed bug infestation in the woman’s bedroom, and contacted Code Enforcement.
City workers arrived to inspect the home, and it was revealed that there was trash around the house, unsanitary conditions, and un-permitted work, according to Stuart Walker, Director of Code Administration with the City of Lubbock.
“[There was] rubbish in the yard, things like that that the fire department wanted to make us aware of. So we went out and addressed those issues, and we’ll follow up on that case in the future and make sure that everything gets corrected,” Walker said.
He said his department generally does not respond to bed bug calls, but due to the condition of the home, the City deemed the home “uninhabitable.”
“We call codes for a number of different type of calls,” said LFR Division Chief Steve Holland.
“It’s a public and safety issue,” he added. “Codes needed to come and look and see if there was anything big enough for public health and safety [violations].”
Adult Protective Services was also notified of the situation, and a relative of the woman who rents the home, said a representative came to the home to evaluate the woman’s living conditions.
That family member said the woman was removed from the residence by law enforcement and taken to a local hospital for evaluation after refusing to leave the property. Her medical condition was not publicly known as of Thursday evening.
Walker recommended contacting a local pest control company with concerns about bugs.
“If you’ve got an infestation in your house, contact a private pest control operator, find out what the best solution is. If you’ve got issues with your house, you’re more than welcome to give us a call. There are some programs in the community and programs with the city that if you qualify, you may get some assistance as far as making repairs,” Walker said.
The phone number for the City of Lubbock is (806) 775-3000. The city also facilitates the 2-1-1 phone service to put residents in touch with social service agencies.
