Rats! Rodents Infest Streets at Ground Zero
http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/ny-nyrats192557313jan19.story?coll=ny%2Dnews%2Dprint
By Graham Rayman STAFF WRITER
January 19, 2002
It's not something that a lot of people want to talk about, but the World Trade Center collapse appears to have sent legions of rats into the neighborhood around Ground Zero.
One sign of the problem is the line of large, black bait traps in plain sight on the sidewalk along Greenwich Street north of Chambers Street.
"A lot of people in the neighborhood have been complaining about rats," said George Skelly of Tribeca Hardware. "I've been selling a lot of rat poison and rat traps."
"They are all over the place, but nobody is talking about it," said Carole De Saram, leader of the Tribeca Community Association, referring to the response she's gotten from officials.
Paul Goldstein, district manager of Community Board 1, said he expects an increase of complaints as more buildings are reopened and the weather begins to get warmer.
The collapses, the shattered pipes and tunnels, and the noise of the recovery effort forced the pests to roam in search of water, garbage and new places to hide, experts say.
"The World Trade Center going down just caused a movement of land and earth, and the rats living below there moved out into the community," said Barry Glass, owner of 21st Century Pest Elimination on East 19th Street, which has many clients in the area.
The problem has spurred increased complaints from residents and businesses, Glass said.
"I would say the number of calls for rodents has tripled," said James Skinner, owner of A and C Exterminating of East Meadow, which also has clients in the area.
De Saram suggested the rat problem has been overshadowed by the sheer bulk of other concerns. Even before Sept. 11, residents had rat issues.
Still, Michael Deutsch, an entomologist with the pest-control firm Assured Environment in Manhattan, calls the idea of a rat migration just a theory. He said the infestation of flies in buildings that were evacuated after Sept. 11 has been a larger problem.
Andrew Tucker, a city Health Department spokesman, said he could not provide a figure on the number of pest-control complaints received from around Ground Zero.
But Tucker said the agency has placed 1,000 bait stations in the area, conducted 1,200 inspections of food establishments and removed an unspecified amount of spoiled food from restaurants. Early on, the city hired a firm called Terminex to bait the perimeter of Ground Zero.
The topic of rats also has been recently discussed in Battery Park City. "Rats Over Running BPC," one resident said on an electronic bulletin board this month. "There are reports of rats the size of cats all over BPC. No doubt being dug up from the 24/7 construction site."
The response from another resident: "I have not seen any. Get a grip."
Meanwhile, within Ground Zero, known as the "red zone," there is no sign of a rat problem, said Anthony Garguilo, of ASG Pest Control in West Babylon.
"I think they all died in the fire," said Garguilo, who has been providing pest control since Nov. 1. "I would have expected more, but there have been very few."
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