NEIGHBOURS say they are facing a “massive rat infestation” — with rats jumping out of bins and appearing in toilet pans.
Tenants and homeowners on Summerhill Road, Drumchapel, claim rodent sightings have increased exponentially since Glasgow City Council general waste bin collections reduced to just one every three weeks in 2020 and 2021.
Media ScotlandNeighbours Moira Berry, Amy Stuart and Robert Hanna say they’re overrun with rats[/caption]
Media ScotlandMoira found a rat in her toilet pan[/caption]
Media ScotlandBins are overflowing on Summerhill Road[/caption]
Moira Berry, 59, told GlasgowLive: “I’ve had them in my garden, and last week one came up the toilet at 5am. I’ve caught two myself in a trap. It’s ever since this bin situation.”
Bins are overflowing on Summerhill Road, with still more than a week to go until the next general waste bin collection.
Resident Amy Stuart, 41, said: “The bins are shocking. Ever since the bin schedule was changed, the rats have come out in force.”
Rat holes can be seen up and down the row of homes, which lies across from a children’s play park.
Dad of four Robert Hanna, 45, says he fears letting his children play out of the house due to the rat issue.
Robert said: “We see them daily. Rats are jumping out of bins. My wife has come home to find rats scurrying around on the driveway.”
He says some of the houses on Summerhill Road have as many as 12 people living within them, all using one bin.
Robert’s family of six produces more waste than the bins can take.
“One size does not fit all,” he said. “We have black bins and green bins, and they are to last us for three weeks.
“It’s not going to work in these particular houses. We are jumping on the bins to try to squash things down. It just does not work.
“Roll on to now, and lo and behold there is a massive rat infestation.”
Despite some residents being issued with larger bins, litter still lines the streets.
The issue is compounded by flytipping, which occurs frequently in the nearby entry, Robert says, and is evident on green space surrounding the scheme.
Robert added: “There have been dirty nappies and sanitary towels out in the street, with rats running around. It’s 2025, and we shouldn’t be living like this.
“We’re having to take stuff to the dump, and we shouldn’t have to do that. We’re paying more council tax, and the council are doing less.”
Amy Stuart gestures to her own overflowing bin, adding: “I don’t drive, so I can’t take it to the dump. Where can I put all the stuff?”
Rats have been spotted in back gardens, and Robert says rodents have also taken up residence in lofts along the terrace.
Robert explained he and other residents are putting plant pots on their toilet seats at night to prevent rats accessing their homes via the toilets.
Poison traps have been laid by Glasgow City Council.
Robert said: “Pest control come down and empty the traps and put new poison in, but it does not solve the root problem, which is the bins.
“Council tax has just gone up, rent has just gone up. I’ve written two dozen emails to Wheatley Housing Group and the council, and they’re passing the book between one another.”
Residents have been buying their own rat traps, with Robert saying “we’ve had to take it into our own hands. I’m being fobbed off.
“It’s only going to get worse in the summer, because the rats are going to breed.”
He added: “I want to speak to someone high up at the council face-to-face. They need to tell us how they’re going to resolve this. Why should we pay our council tax if we have to live with a rat infestation?”
A spokesman for the council said: “We are currently managing pest control treatments at five properties at this part of Summerhill Road. All of our pest control treatments follow the guidance set by the British Pest Control Association.
“This guidance indicates that environmental issues such as hygiene in bin areas or pest proofing of property must be undertaken first to ensure the effectiveness of the pest control treatment.
“All households with a pest issue are advised to ensure their food waste is properly contained within a suitable bin, their bin area and garden areas are kept in good condition and all feed for birds and other animals is regularly cleared away.
“All properties that receive a kerbside bin collection have access to a dedicated bin for food and garden waste and this bin will provide suitable containment for the food waste produced by any household.”
A spokesperson for Wheatley Homes Group said: “We’re working with the council’s environmental health team, which is carrying out baiting in the area, to treat a report of a rat in our tenant’s home.
“We’re carrying out an inspection on Monday at our tenant’s home to check the waste pipes and will arrange any other repairs that need done. We’ve had no issues reported about walls, drains or gardens in our homes.”
Bin strike chaos with rats the size of CATS & desperate locals swarming lorries to offload their rotting rubbish
BIN strikes have triggered chaos with “rats the size of cats” infesting mounds of rubbish – with “no end in sight”.
Manic scenes unfolded along the leafy streets of Mosely, in Birmingham, today as residents hit out over the lack of refuse collection.
A bin lorry was swarmed by so many people it sparked enough concern from a local councillor to call the police.
Residents arrived carrying bursting black bags full to the rim in a desperate bid to ditch them.
As reported by the BBC, others were seen sprinting down the road with their bins.
Some residents pulled up with cars full of rubbish, which was then dumped out on the street.
West Midlands Police said two people have been arrested this week amid the strikes.
The force shut down the collection early today as chaos ensued and the lorry reached its limit.
It comes amid a clash between waste collector’s union Unite and Birmingham City Council over the scrapping of a “safety-critical role” and pay cuts has led to indefinite strikes.
But overflowing bins have caused utter carnage, with disruption set to “worsen”.
One resident told MailOnline they haven’t been able to get rid of their rubbish for two weeks.
“Everybody is in the same boat and desperate to get rid of their waste,” she added.
Another told the BBC on Wednesday: “People who aren’t residents are parking up and leaving rubbish outside of my house.
“It was very noisy with people honking, it wouldn’t be a problem if they were doing it in a decent way but the people who came here didn’t care.”
As locals, workers and shoppers desperately try to avoid the vermin-hit streets, cabbie Abid Hussain said: “The garbage is piling up, the vermin are coming out. It is disgusting!
“The city is filthy, it stinks. It is a health issue and the situation will only get worse.”
The driver of 32 years slammed authorities for allowing Britain’s second biggest city to “go to the rats.”
Abid, speaking exclusively to The Sun, sighed: “It should never have come to this. People are terrified to come out.
“No one wants to see rats scurrying around all the un-emptied bins and the rubbish dumped in streets, alleyways and gardens.
“It is a terrible advert for the city where I have worked for more than three decades. I am a barometer for Birmingham and this is the worst it gets.”
Rodents likened to be “the size of cats” have been sighted by residents scurrying around vast piles of garbage that have built up since the start of the year.
Media ScotlandThe rubbish issue is apparently compounded by flytipping[/caption]
Media ScotlandThe reduction in bin collections means more rodents in the area[/caption]
Media ScotlandResidents are putting plant pots on their toilet seats to prevent rats getting in during the night[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
