A PLAGUE of rats has overtaken Barrow Park

Horrified residents say they regularly see them even in broad daylight.

The infestation has been traced to within the park but keeping control of the pests across the 45-acres is a constant battle.

Now Barrow Borough Council is considering hiring contractors to tackle the problem.

Gary Ormondroyd, chief environmental health officer, said: “We have had complaints from residents who live adjacent to the park.

“We have had a look at the problems and made the assumption it’s likely that the evidence of infestation is coming from the park.”

Barrow Borough councillor Steve Forbes, of Park Drive, Barrow, said: “It’s an ongoing problem.”

He was walking in the park on Sunday when a rat scuttled across his path.

Cllr Forbes believes the root of the problem is the upheaval caused by the renovation of the lake.

Keith Newby, owner of Barrow Leisure Boating Services, said: “We do have a problem and the rat catcher pays regular visits. The environ-mental health are dealing with a problem on the Lorne Road side of the park now.

“Rats do pop up all over the place, they tend to move about wherever there is food, but when they pop up we get the rat catcher man in.”

Mr Ormondroyd said: “The parks department are doing an assessment of the scale of the problem, to see if it’s necessary to bring a contractor in.

“It’s not unreasonable that an area the size of the park, with water facilities, will from time to time have a rat infestation.”

Stuart Bennett, of Ulverston pest control firm Pied Piper, said that seeing rats in daylight, an increase in sightings, rat holes and rat runs, and droppings, was a sure sign of an infestation.

He said: “There has been an increase worldwide in rats and the reason is that people leave food for them.”

He said rat numbers were estimated to have jumped in 20 years from three to five for every person.

Cllr Forbes warned householders to block any holes in walls.

Last year a rat got into his house and he heard the pitter patter of its feet for days as it ran around under the floorboards.