The Ridge Royal Hotel, a leading hospitality facility based in Cape Coast, has introduced a special fumigation exercise expected to be emulated by industry practitioners to prevent an invasion of the parasitic insect into the industry.
The hotel is not affected by the blood-sucking insects but has introduced a bi-annual disinfection to further secure the health and safety of its guests.
Already, the facility runs quarterly fumigations to control rodents, pests, and insects outside of the hotel and to eliminate those inside but the special one against bedbugs has been introduced due to their resilient nature.
Executed by Busters Apex Limited, a fumigation and pest control company, the first was carried out at the end of January this year and the second is scheduled for the end of June.
Bedbugs hide and breed in spaces such as mattresses, bed frames, sofas, cracked walls, bags, and carpets, and are spread by guests when they latch onto suitcases, clothes, linens, among others.
Their ability to survive for well over a year without food helps them spread even in adverse conditions and over long distances.
They cause allergic reactions leading to difficulties in breathing, abdominal pains, swollen faces as well as insomnia and anxiety.
Nana Obiri Aduama, General Manager of the Hotel, said the preventive and control measures against pests and insects had become necessary to ensure the health and safety of guests.
Nana Aduama who is also the Nkosohen of the Oguaa Traditional Area, said the presence of such insects in hospitality facilities could destroy the hospitality sector and collapse tourism.
“And so, hotels and guest facilities should take fumigations seriously to reduce the pests in the system.
“It will increase our cost marginally but the cost of not doing it will be far higher,” he cautioned, adding that the disinfection must be carried in a measured manner to avoid harming the staff and guests.
Nana Aduama called on authorities to make frequent fumigations compulsory for all hotels to protect one another and save the industry.
In the specific case of the bedbugs, he said it behoved all hotels to adopt the fumigation to keep the insects away because no one could stop it if it started.
“People will definitely move from one hotel to the other, and you do not know what they carry., so, let us all come together to put these preventive measures in place so that, we will be safe,” the General Manager urged hotel managers.
He said the hotels and their managements, the Hotels Association, the Ghana Tourism Authority and the Food and Drugs Authority should collectively make fumigations an integral part of their health and safety protocols for their collective good.
GNA
AT /BM
February 10, 2024.
Pics attached
