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June 24, 2011
An avalanche of rat complaints: eating garbage, car insulation, infesting houses and backyards; agencies pressed to move faster; CM James says she's "shocked"
Atlantic Yard Report
If anyone thought that complaints about rat problems in the area around Atlantic Yards were isolated carping, they could hear an avalanche of anecdote tonight at a contentious meeting that drew a diverse crowd of 60 people, many from beyond the orbit of the sponsor Dean Street Block Association.
"We don't have a normal rat problem, we have a rat tsunami," observed Dean Street resident Karen-Ida Scott.
Others described a car catching on fire from food debris dragged into an engine by rats, garbage cans torn up, kids unable to play in the Dean Street Playground, and rodents appearing, alarmingly, inside houses and on people lounging in backyards.
"I now park in Park Slope," recounted John Martinez, aiming to save his car's insulation from regular rat attacks. "If gets any further, I'll have to take a cab to my car."
Others lodged complaints from as far away as Fort Greene.
"I was shocked," commented Council Member Letitia James (left, standing), who organized the meeting, held at the Soapbox Gallery on Dean Street between Carlton and Vanderbilt Avenues. "The magnitude of the problem is astonishing. It requires immediate action."
Related coverage...
threecee via flickr, 2011 DSBA Rodent Meeting
Posted by eric at June 24, 2011 11:05 AM