Two Pa. cities in prime 20 of Orkin’s mattress bug infestation checklist

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Although fewer people traveled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, bed bugs couldn’t get the memo to stay at home.

Chicago topped Orkin’s Top 50 Bed Bug Cities List for last year, with Baltimore and Washington, DC ranked second and third.

Orkin said it based its list on treatment data from the metro areas where Orkin performed the most bed bug treatments from December 1, 2019 to November 30, 2020. The ranking includes both inpatient and commercial treatments.

Unfortunately, Pennsylvania has two cities in the top 20 – Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Philadelphia lost two places from last year, so that’s good news.

Here are the rankings after Chicago, Baltimore, and Washington, DC:

4. Detroit

5. Columbus, Ohio

6. Cleveland, Ohio

7. Indianapolis

8. Cincinnati

9. Los Angeles

10. Grand Rapids, Mich.

11. Charlotte, NC

12. New York City

13. Atlanta

14. Philadelphia

15. Champagne, Ill.

16. Dallas

17. Raleigh, NC

18. Charleston, W.Va.

19. Pittsburgh

20. Denver

According to Orkin, the bed bugs are still lurking, waiting for people to resume their journey.

“It’s easy to forget that bed bugs are still a major threat and should be a priority for anyone interested in an outing. Bed bugs can survive for several months while waiting for their next blood meal. So they are likely to occur when a source of food, humans, becomes available, ”Orkin said.

“Typically bed bugs are 3 to 16 inches long and are mostly nocturnal insects that come out of hiding to take blood meals from sleeping people and are red to dark brown in color. Bed bugs are hematophagous, which means that blood is their only source of food. You can travel from place to place with ease, including luggage, wallets and other personal effects. “

Orkin recommends these steps for examining bed bugs under the acronym SLEEP

  • Examine the room for signs of infestation. Look for tiny, black, ink-colored stains on mattress seams, in soft furniture, and behind headboards. You can even hide in power outlets and picture frames.
  • Lift up the hiding places of the bed bugs and look inside: the mattress, box spring bed, and other furniture, as well as behind baseboards, pictures, and even torn wallpaper.
  • Lift the luggage off the bed and away from the wall. The safest places are in the bathroom or on counters.
  • Carefully examine your luggage while you are repacking it and when you return home from a trip. Always keep your luggage away from the bed. Also, double-check all used furniture and clothing before bringing them to your home, and double-check after guests visit.
  • After you return home, place any tumble dryer-safe clothes in your luggage on the highest setting for at least 45 minutes.

Here is the rest of the list:

21. Flint, Me.

22. San Francisco

23. Greenville, SC

24. Norfolk

25. St. Louis

26. Richmond, Va.

27. Toledo, Ohio

28. Dayton, Ohio

29. Buffalo, NY

30. Omaha, Neb.

31. Nashville

32. Milwaukee

33. Fort Wayne, Ind.

34. Greensboro, NC

35. Cedar Rapids, Iowa

36. Knoxville, Tenn.

37. Houston

38. Davenport, Iowa

39. Tampa

40. Youngstown, Ohio

41. South Bend, Ind.

42. Phoenix

43. Lexington, Ky.

44. Seattle

45. Orlando

46. ​​Louisville

47. Miami

48. Lansing

49. Peoria-Bloomington

50. Minneapolis-St. Paul

CONTINUE READING

  • The police want to find someone at the Walmart store who released bed bugs.