An infestation of bed bugs at a local apartment complex is now under control, but not after the quick-moving bugs spread throughout one section of the building.

The problem started in Apartment 401 of downtown Wheeling's Windsor Manor.

"They only come out at night primarily, but here you could see them crawling the walls, through papers, on the floors, on sofas in broad daylight," said Chuck Fisher, a health department sanitarian who was sent to investigate after other tenants complained last year.

Apartment manager Margaret Massey said the tenant wouldn't comply with demands from her or the health department, so before he was finally evicted, the problem had spread.

"That occurred by people moving things in and out. People going down to the street, finding a piece of furniture that they liked more than theirs and bringing it back up inside," Fisher said.

Massey said now when someone moves out and leaves furniture, workers destroy it instead of putting it out on the curb for trash.

The apartment was required to be nearly completely remodeled. Massey said they did everything from taking down the ceiling tiles and exterminating them to replacing the light switch plates to stop the problem from spreading.

Bed bugs don't transmit diseases, but they do bite, which can lead to allergic reactions or infections.

Fisher said he's satisfied with how Windsor Manor's management worked to combat the problem. An exterminator comes regularly, and if a tenant has a bed bug complaint, Massey handles it that day.

He said bed bugs can affect any home, regardless of economic status or cleanliness.

Massey said the problem is under control and she's working to keep it that way. She said she suspects her complex isn't the only place in Wheeling that has had a problem with the pests.