Three North Carolina Cities Have Some Of The Most Bedbugs In The Country
You know the old expression, “sleep tight; don’t let the bedbugs bite?” Well, for some places that’s less of a friendly colloquialism and more of a warning. The pest control company Orkin just released a list of the top 50 cities with the worst issues with bedbugs, three of which were in North Carolina.
Orkin used data involving cities with the most bed bug treatments from December 2022 to November 2023.
The first city in North Carolina to make the list (seen in full here) is Charlotte, with the Queen City ranked 9th overall for most bedbugs. This is a 5-point increase from last year for Charlotte, meaning their bedbug problem has only gotten worse.
Further down the list is Greensboro, ranked number 18. Greensboro was ranked 43rd this time last year, which begs the question: does Guilford County have some sheet-washing ban in place that I’m not aware of?
The final North Carolina city on the list is Raleigh (technically Raleigh-Durham), ranked 24th overall. Raleigh is the only North Carolina city on this list to actually improve its bedbug situation, moving from 20th place this time last year.
This is certainly not a great showing for my home state, and to be honest it’s got me wanting to pressure-wash my whole bed when I get home. But the bedbug problem is even worse in Chicago, which ranks number 1 on the list for the fourth year in a row.
Orkin is also encouraging people to learn how to detect bedbugs, especially in unfamiliar environments like hotels and Airbnb bookings. In addition to checking your mattress and box spring, it’s also recommended that you examine cracks behind wall outlets, molding and carpet.
And if you ever stay overnight in Charlotte, Greensboro or Raleigh, it might behoove you to bring your own protective bubble just to be extra safe.