They are everywhere, bedbugs. At the hospital, at the cinema, at the library and, it seems, on trains. They are also very present on social networks, in trends, comments and even alarming videos from Internet users. They are also on the menu of debates, notably after the release of Pascal Praud, on CNEWS, who questioned the link between immigration, lack of hygiene and the appearance of these parasites. An imbroglio of approximations which did not fail to fuel psychosis. In Hauts-de-France, this resulted in a flood of messages sent to the regional council by TER users, worried about bringing bedbugs home.
Xavier Bertrand, the president of Hauts-de-France, sent a letter last Thursday to the regional director of the SNCF. “In recent days, we have seen an increasing number of images on social networks of bedbug infestations on board trains operated by the SNCF, and more generally of the proliferation of pests spotted directly by users,” warns -he. The elected official cites the example of the Marseille-Paris TGV on September 24, in which “the presence of bedbugs was noted by travelers as well as by the train controller himself,” he assures. An infestation denied on Friday by the SNCF, the carrier affirming for its part that “no proven case of bedbugs has been confirmed in recent days on board TGV”.
” Prevention is better than cure “
No matter, the main thing for Xavier Bertrand is that the parasites do not invade the trains in his region. “In fact, there has never been any proof of the presence of bedbugs in TER trains,” recognizes Franck Dhersin, responsible for transport in the region. But, according to him, users hardly differentiate between TGV and TER when it comes to the client: “We received a lot of messages and letters asking us what we planned to do about this, he continues. We felt that in the face of this pressure, we needed to reassure. » Because the migration problem is important in Hauts-de-France, because Pascal Praud mixed immigration, lack of hygiene and bedbugs.
However, at 20 minutes, entomologist Léna Polin recently assured that there was no link between lack of hygiene, unsanitary conditions and bedbugs. The expert also insisted that if travel had favored the return of bedbugs in France, it was indiscriminately between migratory flows and tourism.
The motto is therefore “prevention is better than cure”. Newly elected senator from the North, Franck Dhersin remembers having to face the scourge of bedbugs when he was in the urban community of Dunkirk: “we had an infestation in a youth hostel. After an initial ineffective treatment, everything had to be burned: the mattresses, the sheets, the curtains. » Except that there, there is no question of burning TER trains at 35 million euros each. The region therefore asked Jérôme Bodel, director of SNCF Hauts-de-France, to take the lead. But how ? “It’s the SNCF that needs to be asked,” jokes Franck Dhersin.
SO 20 minutes contacted the person concerned, Jérôme Bodel, who did not respond. But SNCF responded, confirming once again that no bedbug reports could be verified. On the other hand, the carrier assured that it was “implementing both preventive and curative treatment” against pests in general. Installation of “traps”, “anti-pest gels in areas not accessible to customers”, “insecticide spraying”, etc. The SNCF also called on its customers to be vigilant, “these insects could be brought […] by travelers.”