Residents of Montreal North were left with nowhere to turn when dozens of rats invaded their block and the city cut off the water supply to their neighborhood.
“Last Sunday, we were doing my father’s funeral in the yard when we realized it,” says Karin Trudel-Vecina, whose land is infested with insects. They started walking between the legs of the guests.
Neither she nor her partner, Guillaume Côté, had slept well since the invasion began. They worry about their five children and their dog. “It carries diseases,” the couple insists.
Pests have taken over the vegetable garden of Martine Desjardins, who lives far away. “It’s disgusting,” says the woman who claims she lost her tomatoes to rodent claws.
Martin Desjardins, a citizen whose vegetable garden was plagued by rats due to the city’s intervention.
Photo by Zoé Arcand
A neighbor, Daniel Pelletier, returned from his family trip to Niagara Falls and rushed to deal with the infestation in his son’s car.
Flood related
The land, which is currently struggling with an epidemic, would have flooded a few days ago following water damage to a neighboring house.me Trudel-Vecina.
The city says it shut off the water supply to the building on June 25. Neighbors said that the rats would have come down only after that.
“When the firemen and the city guys intervened next door, I heard them screaming that there were a lot of rats,” the mother assures.
One of the rodents tries to break into the Catalina Humbert property, where Karine Trudel-Vezina and her partner Guillaume Cote live.
Photo by Zoé Arcand
“Abandoned” by the city
Despite numerous calls, the city has been slow to send reinforcements to destroy the animals, Karin Trudel-Vecina worries.
“Yesterday when I called 311, the city told me it can’t be and I’m making this up,” said owner Catalina Umbert, who worried about her housing and the health of her tenants.
Catalina Umbert worries about the health of her property and her tenants when rodents have taken over the entire block.
Photo by Zoé Arcand
Newspaper Noted dozens of large brown rats roaming the entire block, yards and around houses with impunity.
At the time of the Journal’s representative’s visit, there was no sign of animals inside the shelters visited, and all were healthy and clean. Since then, Mrs. Trudel Vezina’s home has reportedly been invaded by insects.
The city will not have an exterminator service, he said. “They say they will call for tenders, but it will take thirty days. At least they can plug the leak that the rats are passing through.”
“They told me to call the police,” she marveled.
Contacted by NewspaperThe borough of Montreal-North notes that it is taking steps to “contact the individuals involved, schedule a visit to the campus and, if necessary, take the necessary steps to resolve the issue.”
“If a complaint is established, we will issue a notice of infringement and the owner will be required to appoint an exterminator,” says Louise Tremblay, the borough’s communications manager. Then we will monitor the situation until the problem is resolved,” he said.
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