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One city in South Carolina was recognized among 50 other cities across the country, but it's for something that might make your skin crawl. Orkin released its annual list of the U.S. cities with the most reported cases of bed bugs, using data gathered from December 1, 2021 to November 30, 2022 of cities with the most bed bug treatments.
One city in South Carolina earned a spot on the list: Greenville. Coming in at No. 24, Greenville managed to drop three spots from the previous year.
"Bed bugs are extremely resilient, making them difficult to control. As people being to ramp up their travel plans this year, it's important to known how to protect themselves through pest identification and proper control," said Orkin entomologist Ben Hottel. "Contrary to popular belief, bed bugs are visible to the naked eye, but are excellent at hiding. Involving a trained professional at the sight of a bed bug introduction is recommended."
Bed bugs are typically around 3/16 inch long and red to dark brown in color are mostly nocturnal, coming out at night to "take blood meals from sleeping humans," the site states.
So what should you do to minimize the risk of infestation? Orkin suggests regularly checking your home for signs of bed bugs, inspecting mattress seams, baseboards and even electrical outlets. Experts also recommend decluttering your home to make spotting the insects even easier and thoroughly inspecting any secondhand furniture before brining it inside your home.
Here are the Top 50 cities for bed bugs, according to the report:
- Chicago
- New York (+1)
- Philadelphia (-1)
- Cleveland-Akron, OH (+4)
- Los Angeles (+7)
- Detroit (-2)
- Indianapolis (-1)
- Baltimore (-3)
- Washington, D.C. (-2)
- Columbus, OH (-1)
- Champaign, IL (+2)
- Grand Rapids, MI (-1)
- Cincinnati (-3)
- Charlotte (+1)
- Denver (+2)
- Atlanta (-2)
- Dallas-Ft. Worth (-1)
- Pittsburgh (+2)
- Charleston, W.V. (+3)
- Raleigh-Durham (+4)
- Flint, MI (+2)
- San Francisco (-3)
- Norfolk, VA (+2)
- Greenville, SC (-3)
- St. Louis (-7)
- Richmond, VA
- Youngstown (+10)
- South Bend, IN (+5)
- Buffalo, NY (-1)
- Knoxville (-1)
- Cedar Rapids, IA (-1)
- Omaha, NE (-5)
- Nashville (+1)
- Dayton, OH (-2)
- Ft. Wayne, IN (+1)
- Harrisburg (+6)
- Davenport (-2)
- Toledo (-7)
- Seattle (+5)
- Milwaukee (-2)
- Tampa (-1)
- Lansing, MI (+6)
- Greensboro, NC
- Houston (-3)
- Miami (-6)
- Lexington, KY (+1)
- Orlando (-1)
- Peoria (-3)
- Louisville, KY (-3)
- Lincoln, NE
Check out Orkin's full report to learn more about bed bugs and how to spot them.