31 January 2024 , 19:19
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Residents of a multi-million pound housing development say they're in a "living nightmare" as rats run amok.
The vermin are reported to be nesting under car bonnets, chewing though gas bow wiring and burrowing under houses at the £250million Northbridge development in Sighthill, Glasgow. Locals claim the issue is getting worse even though pest control measures have been put in place. Images show rats in people's gardens and in the street. One resident - who wished to remain anonymous - said it is "disgusting", adding that people are finding dead rats under their car bonnets.
"They are also burrowing under the houses and people can hear them coming up through the walls," they said. "People are finding them everywhere. The council and housing association hired a company to come and kill some of them. [But] one neighbour told me that they had seen the fattest rat that they had ever seen trying to go into their house. They go into in the cavities."
The resident continued: "I see them everyday, I'm scared to go to my car. People are having to bang on their bonnets and jangle their keys to scare the rats off so they can get out of their car and go to their house. It's absolutely disgusting. We pay a lot of money to live here in what was meant to be a big all singing all dancing development but now its overrun with rats."
It is understood exterminators concluded the perfect storm of conditions had been created for the vermin to breed due to a stagnant body of water located near the entrance of the estate and inadequate waste collection, GlasgowLive reported. A second resident said they are terrified the rats could cause a gas explosion and claims a car even caught fire due to rat hair left under the bonnet. They added: "They have been all over our garden. There must be more than 250 in the area, it's impossible to miss them."
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Rats are infesting the streets, people's gardens and cars (Glasgow Live)"We've had about five or six out there at once and there are burrows and droppings everywhere, our garden has been ripped up with them. Every time my partner goes out to the bins there are always a couple in there. The council come out and put bait boxes and poison but they are gone so quickly. It also means there are constantly dead rats outside the houses.
"Neighbours are finding dead rats in the gas boxes. They are also burrowing at every gas box along the street - we think they must be gaps under the pipe that is allowing them to move freely. All the wiring has come out of my gas box. I'm scared it'll cause a danger or they will target the gas pipes and cause my house to go up in flames."
It is claimed that two vehicles have been completely destroyed by the rodents. Residents have also noticed recurring flat tyres. The resident continued: "One of my other neighbours down the street had a family of rats move into their van over the Christmas break. They had to spend over £1000 to get their wiring fixed.
"The fire brigade had to be called out to another car because it started smoking. The rat droppings and hair caught fire and they had to scrap the car. It's absolutely shocking how much damage they are doing. In another case I know someone opened their car door and the foam fell out because they had got in and ripped it apart. The rats have made living here a nightmare, it makes my skin crawl. I can't even walk the dog at night."
Droppings under a car bonnet (Glasgow Live)
A dead rat in someone's gardenThe resident added they were also warned by exterminators that the rats could burrow under the foundations and that the walls will all likely need to be stripped to fully eliminate them from the cavity walls. A Lowther spokesperson said: "We're working closely with Glasgow City Council's environmental team and housebuilders Keepmoat to help the small number of Lowther tenants in the area who are affected.
"As a responsible landlord, we have also called in a specialist contractor to put extra pest control measures in place around our homes. We are doing everything we can to help. Residents in the area who have any concerns should, in the first instance, contact the council's environmental team."
A spokesman for the council said: "Our teams have been working closely with Lowther Homes and the developer, Keepmoat Homes, to address this situation. A pest control intervention has been implemented and we are looking at what other measures are required to deter the pests on a long term basis. Rats are attracted to food waste and in any circumstances it is always essential to ensure that food is properly contained within a properly closed bin to prevent infestation."