For a long time, Iceland has been perceived as a safe place for entomophobes. After all, Iceland is one of the few countries on Earth without mosquitoes. It’s also been believed that vermin, such as cockroaches, have seldom plagued the domestic population.
Exterminator Steinar Smári Guðbergsson begs to differ. In a conversation with RÚV, he claimed cockroaches have always existed in Iceland — and their numbers are growing due to the increased number of tourists visiting the country.
Steinar calls for extra vigilance among people when packing suitcases before travelling to Iceland. Despite favouring the conditions in kitchens and bathrooms, Steinar says cockroaches are mostly spread throughout pipes underneath older houses. Extermination can be difficult because of insect’s high resilience against poison.
In Steinar’s opinion, bed bugs are a bigger problem than roaches. Due to their rapid reproductive rate, Steinar encourages people to throw out their mattresses instead of attempting to clean them.
Hospital infestation
In the summer of 2024, a particularly nasty case of cockroach infestation was reported in the National Hospital’s renal ward. The roaches originated from the suitcase of a patient who had travelled from Africa. The infestation persevered through multiple attempts of extermination but was ultimately eradicated.
According to the hospital’s spokesperson, the insects were not able to spread out across the facilities. The hospital’s procedures were then updated to combat a similar case repeating itself.
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