A user on TikTok has gone viral after alleging they discovered what seems to be bugs on the clothes of an Ohio location of the popular store chain Burlington.
In a video with over 2.1 million views as of Saturday, TikTok user Brandy Wells (@brandywells) shows what she purports to be bed bugs crawling all over several items within the store.
“When ur Trying to Christmas Shop & See This Crawling on Clothes in Burlington!!!” she writes in the video’s caption.
In the comments section, many users alleged they had experienced something similar.
“No because I actually caught 3 in the baby clothes section…and when I went to tell the workers they called their manager and did nothing to clear them,” claimed a user.
“I’ve seen them in thrift stores too,” added another. “Just check everything before buying.”
Others simply shared their traumatic experiences dealing with the creature.
“New fear unlocked,” declared a commenter. “Bed bugs are a nightmare I never want to deal with again.”
“I had bed bugs when I finally got my first apartment at 18 yrs old,” recalled a second. “I am still terrified and traumatized to this day.”
“Oh no, its been nine years since I experienced them and I’m still traumatized when I see one on a picture or video,” said a third.
@brandywells When ur Trying to Christmas Shop & See This Crawling on Clothes in Burlington!!!
♬ original sound – Rahyndee James
That noted, many commenters also questioned whether the bug was truly a bed bug.
“Are those bed bugs or ticks?” asked a commenter.
“Looks like a tick! not a bedbug,” stated an additional commenter. “I lived in Ottawa. they were horrible!”
While some expressed that the bug was too large to be a bed bug, others countered that bed bugs come in a variety of sizes and can grow exponentially after feeding.
“Ticks have eight legs and will grow lighter and rounder after feeding. They are primarily outdoor pests that attach to a host for an extended period of time,” explains Amanda Lutz for Architectural Digest. “Bedbugs have six legs and will become darker, redder, and more elongated after feeding. They are indoor pests that will hide during the day and emerge at night for a quick meal.”
This isn’t the first accusation of bed bugs to make waves on TikTok. Users have alleged that they found bed bugs in Airbnbs, Walmart break rooms, AMC Cinemas, and more.
The Daily Dot reached out to Burlington via email and Wells via TikTok direct message.
Update 2:33pm CT, Jan. 22, 2023:
In a TikTok direct message exchange with the Daily Dot, the TikToker elaborated on the situation.
“So it was only 1 bug, and yes we showed a nearby employee & she just said ‘someone could have brought it in’ and smashed it with her fingers and went back to work,” the user alleged.
Afterward, she says that she “left our carts that were full of Christmas gifts and left the store.”
She claimed she had not been back to the store since.
