Royal Oak Public Library bans shopping carts, large bags in response to bedbugs

Large bags and shopping carts are now banned from the Royal Oak Public Library in Oakland County, Michigan, as the staff attempts to prevent a return of bedbugs in the building. 

"Due to a recent bedbug issue, large and/or multiple bags of belongings and shopping carts are strictly prohibited inside the library and must be left outside. For public health and safety, do not enter the building if you have small, itchy bites or suspect you have bedbugs on your person, clothing, or belongings. Thank you for your cooperation," the library says on its website. 

Royal Oak Public Library director Sandy Irwin said in late July that the bedbugs were found amid some furniture during a routine monthly inspection in the building. A couple of days before then, a library visitor also mentioned seeing a bedbug in the bathroom. 

The library was closed to visitors for a day with the initial cleanup, with the change in bag policy invoked afterward.  

The library was closed again from Aug. 7-9 as more bedbugs were found in the computer lab, Irwin said. 

"We had our pest control company remove all affected furniture, from this incident and the last. They treated every remaining piece of furniture on the main floor (none were found in the youth area) with a hospital-grade insecticide," Iriwin said after the library reopened on August 10.