Residents of one block of flats in Liverpool say they are "petrified" to leave their homes due to a severe rat infestation.
Eve Bradley and Eireann Dobbins moved into the flat on Vine Street in the city centre five months ago. The building houses students and young professionals.
Liverpool Echo reports it was once they had already signed the lease that they discovered the pesky rodent problem – and they’re now trapped in the property.
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They managed to capture a video of the pests running around the entrance to the flats in one clip. In another, the rats can be seen fighting with one another and scurrying away to hide in the building's plants.
Eve, 22 and from Derry, Northern Ireland, said they had seen one or two dead rats before moving in but didn’t think much of it, assuming it was a one-off.
She told Liverpool Echo: "We thought it was a one and then it wasn't until we went out at night that we realised how bad the situation was.
"You can't leave your flat when it does start to go dark without them running across your feet. It's getting dark earlier – they're going to start coming out earlier and earlier. One of the girls I live with, the rat was inside the lift with her. She didn't see it until she was in the lift going down.
"It causes us so much distress. I'm literally petrified of them."
The Liverpool John Moores student said she has reported the issue to Urban Sleep, who own the property. She has also asked that they move the bins from the door to the underground car park, but says there has been no change.
An Urban Sleep spokesperson said the issue of rats is a "city-wide issue" that it has been "proactively managing" on its site for some time. Urban Sleep said it is now speaking with Liverpool City Council about next steps.
The spokesperson added that it has been in contact with the tenant to find a solution that works for them which they were able to reach last week.
Eve added: "We suggested to the company that the bins could be moved underground. There's an underground car park.
"I've lived in town in student accommodation and this was never an issue. The bins were underground and we never saw any rats."
The Urban Sleep spokesperson said: “Providing clean and safe accommodation for our residents is hugely important to us. This is a city-wide issue that we have been proactively managing on our site for some time, and we are now speaking with LEH and the council about the next steps.
"We have been in regular contact with all our tenants as we manage this issue to bring peace of mind. We have also been in direct contact with the tenant in question to find a solution that works for them, which we were able to reach last week.”
A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said Liverpool Streetscene Services Ltd (LSSL) carry out weekly collection of general waste every Wednesday and a fortnightly collection of recycling. The council said LSSL had also arranged for all the bins to be emptied on Friday as a vehicle was in the area.
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