The CRC tamed its cockroach infestation using drain stoppers to keep the pesky insects in the sewer drains where they belong, CRC officials said.
“The key is you just have to keep them below the drains so they’re not coming up into the common spaces,” said Andrea Thompson, associate director for facilities at the Campus Recreation Center.
CRC officials denied in April that hundreds of cockroaches were living in drains that led to the indoor pool deck, but admitted the infestation to officials conducting an investigation following a Diamondback story on the problem, state health officials said. The CRC has since installed drain covers to prevent the pests from escaping onto the deck, Thompson said.
The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene inspected the pool in April after a complaint was filed, and although inspectors did not see cockroaches, pool officials said they were aware of the infestation and had already begun taking steps to correct the problem, said Pam Engle, acting chief for the Division of Community Services at the health department. The Division of Community Services is responsible for conducting inspections of the aquatic facilities at the university.
“Roaches were not observed at the time of inspection,” Engle said. “We discussed the situation with them, and they recognized the problem. They came up with their own plan based on a private company’s consultation.”
Prior to the health inspection, CRC officials told reporters the cockroach infestation did not exist but went on to discuss the infestation with a private consultant and had plumbers and urban biologists investigate the issue, Engle said.
The health department approved the CRC’s plan to install Trap Guard drain covers to solve the problem. Since the initial cockroach report, the CRC has installed 13 drain covers on the pool deck, with each ranging from $35 to $40 dollars, Thompson said.
“It helps keep insects out, but how the system works, it prevents sewer gas from coming into the facility as well,” she said.
The cockroaches were living in a sanitary sewer line, which is a drain on the pool deck that does not lead into the pool, Thompson said. When water is splashed onto the pool deck it goes down the drains and into the sewage line.
Pool employees said in April they saw cockroaches crawling up through the drains and that CRC officials once used a remote camera to look at the extensive cockroach colony.
The state health department inspects the pool annually and will continue to do so, but because inspectors didn’t see cockroaches during their visit, they will not follow up on the problem unless another complaint is filed.
“With university and facilities as large as UMD, they also need to continue to monitor [the situation],” Engle said, adding that “they did address problem and they did implement pest control procedures.”
Contact reporters Sara Murray and Kaitlin Seith at murraydbk@gmail.com.
