WYANDOTTE, Mich. – Halloween won’t be the same this year for residents of a Wyandotte community that, because of a cockroach infestation, canceled trick-or-treating.
A cockroach infestation at one home got so bad, the city decided to cancel trick-or-treating for residents of 20th Street.
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re a tidy person, a hoarder, roaches come in all these houses,” says Becky Wallace who lives near the infested home.
Wallace says living on 20th Street has been, “nasty. There were roaches and bed bugs . . . when you think about having either one of them in your home, it just gives you that dirty feeling.”
It was a garbage man who first discovered the problem.
“I think they picked up one or two bags and said, ‘whoa’. . . they contacted the police and they were right out,” said Wallace.
One neighbor says the roaches spread in the area because the extermination and clean-up process was not handled properly.
“A lot of contents were put in the backyard, and of course, roach eggs get all over the place and cause the roaches to migrate throughout the neighborhood,” said Tom Vargo.
Because of this, the City of Wyandotte has deemed the entire block un-trick-or-treatable. They don’t want eggs to be stepped on and spread throughout the city.
“Remember when the kids were little, and they drag their costumes and they’re dragging their bags, well from my understanding, you can step on roach eggs and you can take them home, you can spread them. I would not want them to be taken home to mom and dad’s house,” said Wallace.
Becky Wallace says she has lived on 20th Street for over 30 years and had never seen a cockroach until now.
The residents of the home were given 30 days to clean up their home and an inspection revealed they did not meet the city’s standards.
The city will take possession of the home and an extermination process will take place after that.