Residents in many areas in Hanoi are being threatened by a species of insect commonly known as the rove beetle, which can cause painful bites and dermatitis.
Rove beetles found inside a house in Hanoi
Nguyen Trang Hong from Ecohome 1 apartment building in Bac Tu Liem District said that she had been bitten twice.
"We’ve found some 30 insects inside my room, after leaving the window open by accident" Hong said, showing some bruises on her arms. "I got bitten when I tried to remove them off my T-shirt four days ago. It hurt a lot."
Hong said that many of her neighbours have also been stung by the insects, which are attracted by electric lights and fly into their rooms at nights.
People living on other areas including Truong Chinh, Le Trong Tan and Thai Ha Streets are also complaining about the appearance of the insect in their homes.
"The insect is very dangerous, especially to children," Pham Thi Hue on Le Trong Tan Street said. "My six-year-old son was stung once and it took a week to heal the bite. I've sprayed insecticide several times but it hasn’t proved very effective. Now I'm going to in use window screens like many other families to prevent the insect getting in."
The rove beetles are said to have come from some neighbouring farmland areas where rice and vegetables have just been harvested.
According to the Hanoi Dermatology and Venereology Hospital, the number of people suffering from skin diseases caused by the beetles has risen by about 15 per cent since last year.
Vu Manh Hung, deputy director of the hospital, said November was a peak season for the insects which are thriving because of milder weather.
Its bites could cause dermatitis or conjunctivitis, said Nguyen Van Chau, an official of the National Institute of Malariology, Parasitology and Entomology.
He advised people to treat ant bites by washing them with soap and applying ointments containing corticosteroid. The bites usually heal in about a week.