A mum living in Belfast said her life has been left in "turmoil" after her garden has become "overrun" with rats.
Jenny is originally from Antrim, but had been living in Ardglass before being placed in a Housing Executive property in the Holylands area of South Belfast.
She moved into the property in 2019, after her previous property had been damaged in a petrol bomb attack.
Read more: Lisburn mum and three kids left homeless after blaze
Jenny said during lockdown she saw no sign of rats around the property. However, she said this changed once the area started to get busy again.
Since then, Jenny has been dealing with a rat infestation that she said has wreaked havoc on her garden, led to her seeing rats running along her windowsill, and left her two disabled children too scared to go into their own kitchen.
"When I moved here, I had to wash my clothes out in the back shed so was out there every day doing that and I never saw any sign of rats. Then this year I've noticed it's gotten steadily worse," Jenny told Belfast Live.
"My boys were out playing in the garden in a hot tub they have, which was on the decking. A rat ran out and one of my wee boys freaked out and ran into the house, that was the end of the hot tub, he wouldn't go back out. I had to empty the water out of it and put it up on its side in my yard.
"My son's wee hot tub was bought for him by a fund, and it's not something I would be able to afford to replace.
"When I was letting my dog out the back I noticed he was going mad at the decking. When I went out, I started to notice holes in the garden that I kept track of, and saw they were getting bigger. My shed is also now covered in rat droppings."
On November 18, Jenny said the Housing Executive's Maintenance Team stopped by the property as they were planning to lift all of the decking, but were shocked at the state the garden was in.
Jenny added: "They came out that day at 12, which was a Friday, to lift all the decking.
"They said once they lifted the decking all the rats would run, I told them I knew that and that I'd told the neighbour. They sent photos of it to their boss. They're two landscape gardeners who deal with this on a daily basis."
Jenny said the ongoing issues are having an impact on the everyday life of her and her two children. She said she's hoping to get a transfer to a different house, adding the current situation is an "ongoing battle."
After telling her Housing Officer she would like to apply for a transfer, Jenny claims she was told she could be placed on a waiting list and stay in temporary accommodation at a hostel.
"On Friday night, a rat was running along my kitchen windowsill. My wee boy freaked out," she explained.
"Do they want me to be standing making dinner with the rats looking in the window? My son is upstairs asking me if I'll go downstairs and get him a drink as he's too afraid to go into his own kitchen. It's just not fair.
"I can't even open a window at the back of my house due to these rats. I don't know what else to do, I really don't. I was probably happier living in Ardglass where I was getting petrol bombs through the windows. My life is just in turmoil.
"I'm not staying here. Who else would live in this house?"
A Housing Executive spokesperson said: “This tenant contacted us to complain of pests at the rear of their property.
“Our staff attended within days and noted decking placed at the back of the house, which had not been built by the Housing Executive, was the issue.
"We advised the tenant to contact pest control to remove any pests and we understand they attended they property. Meanwhile, we had arranged to remove the decking and carry out remedial work.
"Our contractors attended last Friday but advised that the pest issue had not been completely resolved and therefore, work was delayed.
“We have now asked a pest control contractor to visit the property today for an assessment and to deal directly with any external issues. Our Maintenance Officers also visited the property today and could find no evidence of pests present in the property.
"The tenant has expressed an interest in moving to temporary accommodation and we are working with them to explore options and we will address any other issues they might have.”
READ NEXT:
- NI doctor acted dishonestly over death of nine-year-old girl, tribunal rules
- Ardoyne community worker on why local GP surgery needs to stay
- 'I was fainting in pain': NI woman on ulcerative colitis diagnosis
- Councillor calls for GP out-of-hours to reopen for 'concerned young mums'
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here. To sign up to our FREE newsletters, see here.
