Milwaukee is back on the list of top 50 American cities for bed bugs.
Pest control company Orkin ranked major metropolitan areas based on the number of bed bug treatments performed in 2017. Milwaukee came in at number 29 overall, the same rank it held on the 2017 list.
Jerry Gummo is an exterminator with Milwaukee Bed Bug Pros. He says thes tiny bugs bite you while you sleep, and waste no time spreading from room to room or home to home.
"Bed bugs are hitchhikers. They can be anywhere, a piece of clothing, a piece of furniture, a vehicle, anywhere," said Gummo. "I had one family that bought a futon off of Craigslist and by the time they got done they spent $3,000 to get rid of bed bugs from a $50 futon. That futon had the bugs on it and they spread to their house."
Gummo says bed bugs are not necessarily a sign of uncleanliness. They have been found in cars, upscale hotels, movie theaters, schools and on public transit.
He suggest inspecting your home for signs of bed bugs regularly. Check locations where bed bugs hide during the day, including furniture, mattress seams and bed sheets, as well as behind baseboards, electrical outlets and picture frames.
Also, inspect and quarantine all secondhand furniture before bringing it inside your home.
Below are the cities that made Orkin's list:
1. Baltimore
2. Washington, D.C.
3. Chicago
4. New York
5. Columbus, Ohio
6. Los Angeles
7. Detroit
8. Cincinnati
9. Philadelphia
10. San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose
11. Richmond-Petersburg, Va.
12. Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
13. Cleveland-Akron-Canton, Ohio
14. Indianapolis
15. Dallas-Ft. Worth
16. Atlanta
17. Houston
18. Buffalo, N.Y.
19. Charlotte, N.C.
20. Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News, Va.
21. Knoxville, Tenn.
22. Denver
23. Nashville, Tenn.
24. Pittsburgh
25. Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.-Asheville, N.C.
26. Phoenix
27. Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo-Battle Creek, Mich.
28. Boston
29. Milwaukee
30. Champaign-Springfield-Decatur, Ill.
31. Hartford-New Haven, Conn.
32. Dayton, Ohio
33. Omaha, Neb.
34. Seattle-Tacoma
35. Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla.
36. Charleston-Huntington, W.Va.
37. St. Louis
38. Cedar Rapids-Waterloo-Dubuque, Iowa
39. Myrtle Beach-Florence, S.C.
40. Syracuse, N.Y.
41. Louisville, Ky.
42. Greensboro-High Point-Winston Salem, N.C.
43. Lexington, Ky.
44. Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, Fla.
45. Kansas City, Mo.
46. Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
47. Salt Lake City, Utah
48. Honolulu, Hawaii
49. Las Vegas
50. Portland, Ore.
