Philadelphia ranks 3rd for cities with worst bed bug infestations, according to Orkin

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Orkin is out with its annual list of the top bed bug cities and Philadelphia has dropped down a rank for 2024.

Chicago took the top spot for the third straight year. New York moved into the number two spot, where Philadelphia ranked last year - putting Philadelphia at number three.

The list is based on treatment data from the metro areas where Orkin performed the most bed bug treatments between Dec. 1, 2022 - Nov. 30, 2023, and includes both residential and commercial bed bug treatments.

Known for rapid population growth, female bed bugs can deposit one to five eggs a day and may lay 200 to 500 eggs in their lifetime, according to Orkin. They can survive for several months while waiting for their next blood meal, so they're likely to emerge the moment a food source, like humans or animals, becomes available.

See full list of Orkin's 2024 worst cities for bed bugs.

Tips to prevent bed bugs:

• Inspect your home for signs of bed bugs regularly. Check the places where bed bugs hide during the day, including mattress tags and seams, and behind baseboards, headboards, electrical outlets and picture frames. Inspect when you move in, after a trip, when a service worker visits or after guests stay overnight.

• Decrease clutter around your home to make it easier to spot bed bugs on your own or during professional inspections.

• Examine all secondhand furniture before bringing it inside your home.

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Orkin also says to remember the acronym S.L.E.E.P. to inspect for bed bugs:

• Survey the hotel room for signs of an infestation. Be on the lookout for tiny, ink-colored stains on mattress seams, in soft furniture and behind headboards.

• Lift and look in bed bug hiding spots: the mattress, box spring and other furniture, as well as behind baseboards, pictures and even torn wallpaper.

• Elevate luggage away from the bed and wall. The safest places are in the bathroom or on counters.

• Examine your luggage carefully while repacking and once you return home from a trip. Always store luggage away from the bed.

• Place all dryer-safe clothing from your luggage in the dryer for at least 30-45 minutes at the highest setting after you return home.