Pest control company sent into city housing estate

Residents in Ballinfoile Park have reported an increased presence of rats in their estate, particularly on the green.

Galway City Council has engaged a pest control company to investigate and once the source or the nest is discovered, this company of exterminators will decide how best to tackle the problem.

The pest control company started their investigations during the week with a view to getting rid of the rodents over the weekend.

Apparently, the rat population is higher than normal this winter because of the fine weather experienced over the summer. Rodents are very prolific ordinarily and can have 12 litters a year, but this can be even higher in good weather.

A City Council spokesman said that the complaints from residents in Ballinfoile – or indeed anywhere else around the city – were being taken seriously and that they contacted one of a number of exterminating companies immediately to get on the case.

“We believe that because the rats have been seen on the green, that people might have been leaving food out for birds which then attracted the rodents. We would obviously ask that people not deposit any foodstuff on the green or in any outdoor public space for that reason.

“We do not believe though that the presence of rats in Ballinfoile Park has anything to do with any other problems experienced on the housing estate in recent years, namely a problem with sewer pipes. We have thoroughly investigated the sewers there and dealt with a pong, which I believe has been addressed,” said the spokesman.

A few months ago residents from The West contacted City Council about another rat problem, this time on the site of the former Connacht Laundry building.

The owners of the site were given one month by the Council to implement a rodent control plan to ensure the rats didn’t migrate to Scoil Iognáid and local businesses or indeed to private residences.

The HSE’s Environmental Health Service also demanded that a rodent extermination programme be put in place prior to the demolition of the building, which hasn’t taken place yet.