Environmental health officers concerned about rodents problem around the city

As this year’s Food Safety Month comes to an end, environmental health officials recognize a tough stance must be taken to get rid of rodents particularly in the city.

Environmental Health Officers have been noting the presence of a large number of rodents in Roseau and are now formulating a programme to control the problem.

Senior Environmental Health Officer Sylvester St. Ville said a “rodents survey” will be conducted in urban centres, ports of entry, and at institutions like Princess Margaret Hospital.

“We’re going to assess the incidents of rodents in our country along with other agencies, and we’re going to put in place measures to control the rodents,” he affirmed.

An awards ceremony to recognize establishments, and individuals who have been practicing food safety measures, was among the highlights of Food Safety Month held under the theme: “Your food, your health, your life, your responsibility.”

– DNO Correspondent

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21 Comments

  1. Grand Bayrian
    March 31, 2010

    Garcon,
    Since I was a little boy going to market with my late grandmother, when you arrived at 5:30am in the morning to see Rats running around the market area. I once thought it was an opusum, until my late Grand Mother say “Zanfan sa cest Wat Roseau.” I telling you the biggest rats I have ever seen in my life. that was 30 years ago, I am sure they have mulitiply, 1000 folds. Now we talking about controling rats?.. We need to send a delegation to India (wink, wink) they know how to control them.

    • Anonymous
      April 2, 2010

      MEHN AM TELLING YOU!!!! ITS BEEN LIKE THAT FOR AGES AND NO ONE PAID ATTENTION TO IT, ITS ONLY NOW BECAUSE THEY REALIZE THAT THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IS BECOMING SO CRITICAL THEY TRY TO ACT ON IT.

      THEY BETTER DO WHAT THEY ARE DOING QUICK!

      ITS LIKE ROSEAU HAS TO BE RENAMED AS ”RATVILLE”

      RATVILLE:” WHEN THEY DEFEAT THE RATS, THE CATS WILL EAT.”

  2. The Way I see It
    March 31, 2010

    Looks like the Department is becoming very proactive now. I am happy that they are now seeing some of the things that should have been done years ago.

    I must say though that a rodent survey will under estimate the true magnitude of the rodent infestation in the city. One does not need a rodent survey to know about the extent of rodent infestation. You can see several rats running under the gutters in areas such as Lagoon and River Street and behind the river wall on River Bank. On any day you can see several rats running through the breakers next to the Roseau Market.

    The solution to the rodent infestation problem is not a too chaud too flam one. It must be well planned and continuous. It must involve all the stake holders in the city and that includes the City council, the businesses, the residents, the Health Department, Solid Waste , the Department of Tourism and the department of Planning. The shanty towns in River Street, Virgin Lane, Pound, and other areas in the city contribute to this problem. Poor housing, improper solid waste disposal, and general poor sanitation and hygiene habits are critical to the proliferation of rats within the city.

    Indeed the Ministry of Health through its represenative, the Department of Environmental Health, and the Roseau city council must work together to combat this problem. Again I have to add that there are many public health protection laws but they are only written in the law books but not enforced because regulations required to put those laws into effect have not been drawn up. That must be done expeditiously. In addition the Ministry of Health must procure a supply of rodenticide to be used in the anti-rodent campaign. As we all know public education is critical to any health promotion and disease prevention campaign so there should be a massive education campaign making use of all the various media forms and distribution of educational material within the city to both residential and commercial premises. All those efforts should be augmented by a big clean up campaign within the city to remove all the junk , harbourage and garbage that is accumulating within the city.

    I also think that a supply of rodenticide should be made available at all the district environmental health offices around the island because there is the rodent problem all around the island even if it is not as compounded as that in the city.

  3. NASTY BUSINESS BRINGS NASTY SUFFERING
    March 31, 2010

    THE RESIDENTS OF ROSEAU, THE BUSINESS OWNERS AND GOVERNMENT ALL NEED SOME STONING. IF THEY WERE CLEAN PEOPLE THEY WOULD HAVE MADE A GREATER EFFORT TO KEEP THE PLACE AT LEASE CLEAN! ROSEAU IS A DISGRACE! SHAME YOU PEOPLE! YOU ALL FAIL TO REALISE THAT WHEN THE TOURIST COMES AND NOTICE THIS FILTH THAT THEY DONT GO BACK AND COMPLAIN. THEY WRITE REVIEWS ONLINE AND POTENTIAL TOURIST GET BLOWN AWAY. I HONESTLY WISH THE RIVER WOULD JUST OVERFLOW AND WASH EVERYTHING AWAY!

    THE BUMBS ON D STREETS
    THE CATS AND DOGS
    THE RATS AND ROACHES
    AND MOST OF ALL THE NASTY PEOPLE THAT PAY NO MIND TO THE SITUATION!!!!!

    • Homeboy
      April 1, 2010

      To this person who is certainly angry with himself! What do you propose? You seem to talk about the problem but mention nothing about a solution! You criticize and blame Roseau people, I am sure it is the same where you come from!

      Let me add, there is a rat infestation problem now in some boroughs in NYC! I guess is Roseau people that causing that too!

  4. lol
    March 31, 2010

    lol….lol…forget about the story..where u all get thta picture…the rat looks happy.

    • Anonymous
      March 31, 2010

      he sure does! He maybe loves publicity

    • hmmmm
      March 31, 2010

      that was the first thing i see the happy rat hehehe lol

  5. DOMINCA VS. NEW YORK (RAT ATTACK)
    March 31, 2010

    THEY BOTH HAVE THE SAME ISSUE WITH RATS AND ROACHES. BUT DOMINICA CAN FIT INTO THERE LIKE HOW MANY TIMES? THIS HAS BEEN IN MY HEAD FROM AGES AGO. ROSEAU IS TOO TINY TO BE SO ”OVERPOPULATED” BY RATS, DOGS AND CATS! THE DOMINICAN GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT AND FAST! OR ELSE THE DIEING COUNTRY WILL TAKE ITS LAST BREATH.BANANA HAS DIES OUT ITS TIME FOR PLAN B! TOURISM! TOURIST ARE NOT GONNA COME TO ‘RATVILLE’ THEY DIDN’T LEAVE THE BIG CITIES TO COME EXPERIENCE THE SAME THING.AND THE PEOPLE NEED TO GET SOME SERIOUS TRAINING! THEY NEED GREATER AWARENESS OF THE GROWING ISSUE AND THE DEVASTATING IMPACT THAT HOVERS OVER DOMINICA.

  6. Toot Too bouche
    March 31, 2010

    We need to start a campaign “CLEAN IT UP,CLEAN UP THE CITY. Come on board HARRIS PAINT,LEEWIND ETC.We are going to clean up the city and make it look real good.

    Come on D/cans we can do this,where is our CIVIL PRIDE.THE NATURE ISLE main CITY is RODENT INFECTED? That is un acceptable. Let us band together and clean up the city.

    NO rodents survey have to be made we see them running like rabbits in certain areas of the city.People need to stop the nastiness (garbage strewn everywhere,dirty disposable diapers racing you in the wind etc)

    I spoke to an environmental health official and I was told “when we go to the areas and talk to persons,they come at us with cutlasses”. I said take the police with you.This unhealthy living need to stop.

  7. Concerned
    March 31, 2010

    Roseau has the biggest rats I have ever seen in my life. I think the residents, the city council and the business places (especially restaurants) should play a role in keeping the city clean.

  8. Anonymous
    March 31, 2010

    No it says something about Dominicans! We are nasty people and defecate/urinate and drop our garbage every and anywhere without a thought and most do not pay taxes so Town Council is grossly underfunded to deal with the level of nastiness in Dominica. Of course rats will multiply exponentially. I am glad government is cracking down its about time but it better be everybody they go after including vendors.

    What do you think is the rat population in Zurich?

  9. Funny...ha ha
    March 31, 2010

    Aye…the rat striking a pose there man??? LOL

    On a serious note though, there are hardly any garbage bins around the city; thus, improper garbage disposal. Plus the sewage system is another issue….the place stinks…dogs defecate all over the streets…

    I mean I’m walking to work on morning with a friend and this man steps out from his lil shack in town and just throws a pail with some kind of stinking ‘liquid’ in a drain right in front of us…we figured it was urine mixed with……ewwww…..

    Roseau just needs a face-lift.

    • Toot Too bouche
      March 31, 2010

      I agree with you 100%. If the people living in the city have no proper sanitary conditions ,the power that be need to move those person out of the city and build some kind of housing for them.

      Roseau have too much crap going on.All further development should be moved out of Roseau.When that nonsense started in St.Lucia Mr Compton hired sanitary wardens,you will see them all over CASTRIES (dark green skirt or pants and light green shirts) some lucians were upset they call them (Polis Zodee,rubbish police)

      But you cannot drop anything down in Castries because they all over.Around Castries may have issues but not the City Center,it looks good.

  10. Kalinago
    March 31, 2010

    Some of the biggest rats I ever saw was in the New York subway. LOL

  11. Maggiedumpling
    March 31, 2010

    It might say something of the condition of the capital, but so would say about New York City dubbed by man “the mice and roach capital of the world”.

  12. to cynical
    March 31, 2010

    nope!! have you been to the BIG APPLE??

    go there ,observe then report…

  13. WOW
    March 31, 2010

    I just have to say that this rodent is very photogenic. lol

  14. cynical
    March 31, 2010

    doesn’t that say something about the condition of the capital.

    • alasss..
      March 31, 2010

      yes it does

      • da man
        March 31, 2010

        Roseau city council should make rodent poison available for free to the the residents where the infestations occur. That should help.

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