A pregnant mum of three from North Belfast said she "just wants to leave" her apartment after "finding a huge rat" that chewed on her son's school clothes.
She says that she is desperate to leave her apartment which she claims is "far too small" for her family and has caused her "years of stress and problems" due to a number of issues.
She says that for a number of years anti-social behaviour has been common at the building, with people partying, fighting and taking drugs, with her regularly finding paraphernalia outside of the property.
Read more: 'My life is in turmoil': Belfast mum distraught as garden is 'overrun' with rats
With three young children and a fourth child on the way, she also says that her home has become too small and overcrowded for her family – but sees no way that she would be able to leave.
She said that recently she became very concerned for her children's welfare in the apartment after finding a "huge rat" that she later discovered had chewed on her son's clothes. She believes that the pest has been attracted by large amounts of rubbish bags that had been left in the apartment's bin areas.
Speaking to Belfast Live, the mum said: "The past five years at these apartments have been very up and down but I have now got to the point where I am just desperate to leave.
"The main issues previously have been anti-social behaviour, with people partying and fighting in the hallways which can keep you up all night, and I regularly find drug bags littered around the building so I can't allow my children to ever go outside.
"This has caused me huge amounts of stress.
"Now, after finding a giant rat in my home, which has chewed on my son's clothes, I cannot bare to be here much longer."
The mum said that thankfully members of the local Sinn Fein branch who she appealed to for help regarding her pest problem attended her apartment to lay traps and help remove the rodent, with her saying she was very grateful for all of the support they gave her.
She also said that the two bedroom apartment will soon become much too small for her family and hopes that she will soon find a way to move to a bigger property.
She said: "I am living in this apartment with three young children and my fourth baby is due in February. By that point this place will just not be big enough for us all to live in and it has already become too small for us.
"I have asked to be moved somewhere more suitable, but I don't have much hope of that happening.
"Hopefully in the new year I might be able to save enough to get a privately rented place and that will be a big struggle, but I don't have much choice as my children need the space to grow up and have room for themselves."
A spokesperson for the woman's housing association said said: "We are committed to providing safe and attractive homes for people to live in.
"All tenants at our apartments have been provided with general waste bins and recycling boxes. They are responsible for putting these out for collection and for bringing them inside after they have been emptied.
"We are working closely with tenants at this scheme to encourage them to dispose of their household waste responsibly. We have also met with Belfast City Council on site to try and resolve the waste management issues and information about managing household waste has been delivered to tenants.
"We received a report on December 12, 2022, of a possible rodent sighting, and we are investigating this matter. We have arranged for our contractors to block any entrance points where rodents may gain access. We would also advise tenants to notify rodent problems to the Pest Control Service in Belfast City Council.
"We would encourage anyone with information about drug issues within the local area to report to the PSNI and to our housing team.
"We manage our schemes closely and we take appropriate action against individuals who are in breach of their tenancy agreement. Action can only be taken where tenants report issues to our team.
"We provide advice and support to any tenant who is seeking to move to another social housing property. However, the assessment process is managed by NIHE. We will continue to support this tenant through this process."
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