A man says he was 'frightened to death' upon discovering a foot-long creature in his flat. Michael Rutherford, 57, claims he found a gigantic rat in his kitchen whilst on his way to make a cup of tea, reports Grimsby Live.
Michael, who is disabled after suffering a stroke in 2019, has had his life ruined with the vermin since they invaded his home in September. The 57-year-old says the rats have been chewing through his furniture and leaving his kitchen soaked in urine.
Michael was in for another shock from the vermin earlier this week when he went into his kitchen to boil his kettle and prepare a drink for himself. Upon entering the kitchen he spotted a shadow and subsequently checked behind his washing machine to stunningly spot the mega rat.
Michael said: "When I got up I saw something and I just thought it was a shadow, but when I pulled the washing machine back I saw this massive rat, it was like a small cat. I shut the kitchen door and thought, 'What do I do?'.
"I managed to take two photographs of it and then rang my sister and she came all the way from Barton. It frightened me to death, it was huge."
The Grimsby resident, who has stayed in the property for 22 years, then closed his kitchen door and phoned his housing provider who sent over a pest control worker to dispose of the rat. It is the fifth time they have visited his house since the infestation occurred earlier in the year.
Initially, they only put rat poison in Michael's garden due to his dog also living in the property. But when the situation did not improve it was also spread in his house to no avail either as the rats continue strengthening.
The distressed tenant said he now has to tie his bathroom door to his front room door at night with a scarf to ensure his elderly dog, who is 14, cannot access anywhere in the house where the rat poison is laid.
A spokesperson for Sanctuary Housing said staff will be visiting Michael's property again in the coming days and that they remain "committed" to supporting him. On November 10, workers are set to dismantle his kitchen, fill in any holes where the rats are coming from and put the same kitchen back together.
But Michael said the entire kitchen smells of rat urine and is "full of holes". He claims he should be fitted with a new kitchen since his current one is 32 years old.
A spokesperson for Sanctuary Housing said: “We are in regular contact with Mr Rutherford and last month employed a pest control contractor to investigate this issue and offer him support.
“The contractor carried out a follow-up visit on Friday 21 October, will be visiting again this week and we remain committed to working with Mr Rutherford and our contractor to ensure this issue is resolved.”
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