BROOKINGS – A surprise discovery of cockroaches at Camelot Intermediate School on Friday has been resolved, according to Brookings School District Superintendent Klint Willert.

Brookings School District was alerted on Dec. 7 that cockroaches were spotted at a locker in the school, thankfully nowhere near the school’s food or cafeteria. An extermination service, The Bug Guy, was immediately called in, and baits were left in the area as well as cleaning supplies and other items.

Willert believes the bugs identified as German cockroaches didn’t originate in the school, but rather were unintentionally brought in.

Regardless of how the bugs came into the school, the situation seems to be resolved, Willert said, and there is no longer any reason to think that there are more insects still around. All the same, custodians and staff will be keeping an eye out for them and take particular care to keep that area of the school particularly clean, just in case.

“There were some sprays that were left to help if there were anything more that came up again,” he said, adding “At the building, we have what they described as a hot box, where if you suspect something may have insects, you can put it in there and it takes care of that, whether it’s a backpack or a coat.”

And if more cockroaches appear, they’ll make another call to The Bug Guy.

A note was sent home with each of the school’s approximately 550 students to be handed to their parents or guardians informing them of the situation.

Reflecting on his years of work in schools, Willert said, “I’ve addressed a bedbug situation in the past, lice in the past. Cockroaches are a new one for me.”

Willert noted that problems with insects can be just as concerning in a school environment as an illness, necessitating action.

He urged any households that might have a bug problem to let the school district know so they work together to make sure such problems don’t spread to school buildings or to other households.

“Over the years in my experience, when schools and families work together to address situations like this, whatever the insect might be, the better it is for everybody involved,” he said.

Contact Eric Sandbulte at esandbulte@brookingsregister.com.