I live in South Carolina, and we have them as well. In fact, you’ll find them in any southeastern state. Here we either call them palmetto bugs or waterbugs.
I’ve never had one fly out of a tree at me, but they can get in your house or crawl over your foot as you stand outside at night. Not a pleasant experience if you hate bugs, as I do. They are more numerous when it’s particularly wet out. They aren’t the type of roaches you get when you live in a gross apartment – you can’t get a palmetto bug infestation. They live outside and get inside by accident or in search of water. But they look like huge roaches with wings and they’re fast.
The further south you go, the bigger they get.