Red Beetles in El Paso County, health authority says

Update: El Paso's City/County Health Authority Dr. Hector Ocaranza told ABC-7 there have been reports of red beetles in El Paso.

ABC-7 is working to learn if reports of the red beetles in El Paso are from the county, or within city limits. 

In Wednesday's Public Service Board meeting, El Paso Water officials said steps are now being taken to treat 23 acres of land in Socorro, owned by the utility, that has been infested.

The utility hired Blue Life Environmental, which has used a test spray showing promising results. 

They said they are now gathering thousands of gallons of product to treat the land.

"We have the experts involved. We have the company involved. Now. It's just we're waiting on the product. So we need, several hundreds, probably thousands of gallons of this product. In order to, to treat our land and all of the pecan shells that are there," said Gilbert Trejo, El Paso Water, VP for Engineering, Operations & Technical.

A Texas Department of Agriculture report said there was no indication of the insect on the land in early August. The utility says they do not believe the property is the original source of the infestation. 

Officials said this the start to a longer process. 

"Unfortunately, the experts told us it does take time for these, beetles. Once they get going, it is difficult to eliminate them. It's not like spraying, poison on a cockroach that they'll just flip over and die. It takes time for them to to, process the poison and eventually die," said Trejo.

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Many Socorro residents are still looking for answers after months of dealing with a red Beetle infestation throughout the town.

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service entomologists Patrick Porter, Ph.D., and Robert Puckett, Ph.D., address some of the most frequently asked questions about the red flour beetle.

Other than in West Texas, the infestation was also seen in Levelland in the South Plains region back in 2023.

In an article published by Texas A&M AgriLife today, they explain the beetle is a small insect that is extremely common in grain products like lentils, rice, shelled nuts, and beans.

They explain the current infestation were seeing in Socorro is "coming into structures in large numbers from waste-crushed pecan shells."

ABC-7 has seen pecan shells used as landscape in parts of Socorro. The shells are commonly used for dust control and mulch, according to Texas A&M AgriLife.

It states the piles of shells provide shelter and a "temperature gradient that allows the beetles to move to more comfortable places when they get either too hot or too cold."

An El Paso Water Property has previously confirmed to be infested by the red flour beetles that have spread throughout Socorro, Texas. The property is located at the 10000 block of Socorro Rd. close to the El Paso-Socorro city limits.

"With public health a priority, EPWater is working with agriculture experts to determine the best way to remove the beetles and the pecan hulls," a spokesperson with El Paso Water said.

In the future, Texas A&M AgriLife said "the best solution is for the piles to be treated with insecticide as they are deposited at a shelling facility."