It might have been a mosquito, it might have been a bed bug and it might have been some other insect. What actually caused red welts to form on personnel at Strongsville Fire Station No. 3 was the bite of an oak itch mite.
It was a perfect storm that caused the microscopic oak itch mite to invade the temporary living quarters, essentially a mobile home with three bedrooms and a kitchen, behind the Albion Road station.
“We weren’t sure exactly what was going on. I called the board of health and infectious control representative at the hospital,” said Strongsville Fire Chief Jack Draves, who was also bit by oak mites. “I was working with them on various options. There was a news story on Channel 5 when we were trying to figure all this out. I had the same type of bites for several weeks. It was kind of disappointing that there wasn’t some type of bulletin issued.”
Station 3 is surrounded by large oak trees, some of which have been there longer than the station, on three sides. It is the only one of the four city stations with oak trees on its property. The oldest of the four stations was also the only one built without disturbing the surrounding ground.
The genesis of the mite that bites actually took place this past spring and early summer. It was the rise of the 17-year cicada, which could be heard buzzing throughout the area up until early July.