[Bed Bug Supplement] Chicago: Tops Again

Chicago tops Orkin’s 2014 “Bed Bug Cities List” for the third year in a row. The list ranks cities by the number of bed bug treatments Orkin performed from January to December 2014. Bed bugs were in the news throughout 2014 in the Windy City, with reports of the insects on public transit and inside several downtown office buildings, as well as in police headquarters, a fire station, school, library and movie theater.

“(Bed bugs are) great hitchhikers, and people often bring them inside on their clothes or in their luggage,” said Orkin Entomologist and Technical Services Director Ron Harrison, Ph.D.

In the report Orkin says it has treated for bed bugs in all 50 states. Rollins, Orkin’s parent company, saw an 18 percent increase in bed bug revenue in 2014.

Seven cities made double-digit jumps on Orkin’s Bed Bug Cities List compared to 2013, including Omaha, Neb. (+16); Lexington, Ky. (+16); Sacramento, Calif. (+14); Grand Rapids, Mich. (+13); Buffalo, N.Y. (+12); Charleston, W.Va. (+11); and Louisville, Ky. (+10). Several cities also dropped significantly in the past year, including Syracuse, N.Y.; San Diego; Miami; Greenville, S.C.; and Atlanta. Four cities made the Bed Bug Cities List for the first time including Myrtle Beach, S.C.; St. Louis; Bowling Green, Ky.; and Ft. Wayne, Ind. The top 50 cities are: