PHOENIX — Nick Merrill of Merrill Pest Solutions has been fielding an unusually high volume of calls after a sudden onset of hundreds, and in some cases thousands of small black beetles. And he's not alone.
In an already busy summer season for pest control businesses, the flood of calls to Valley pest control companies began last week, just as the monsoon hit the Valley.
“I’ve been in business eight years and I've never seen anything like it,” Merrill said.
Merrill said 85% of his calls last week were about the beetles and from all over the Valley — from Fountain Hills to Surprise and Glendale. Other pest control companies say calls have been coming from as far away as Tucson.
In fact, Merrill had been previously planning to grow his business at a later date, but the almost overnight appearance of the beetles and surge of calls for service, accelerated his plans.
