Last May, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) laid off 75 percent of its pest control staff, or 62 workers, leaving elected officials and residents to worry about rodent sightings inside subway trains, down sidewalks and in parks.
“DOHMH claims this would save the city $2 million, but the Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget has estimated that these crucial positions would generate close to $6 million annually in fees during the exact same period,” said Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer after calling the city’s plague of rat infestation “a horrific, daily insult to the quality of life in New York.”
Rodent complaints are up 9 percent from last year, with 10,500 calls in 2010, according to 3-1-1 numbers.
“I was horrified to watch a rat inside a subway car jump on a sleeping man on the news earlier in the year,” said Elkin Diosa, a Flushing commuter. “I pay too much money to have rats on the train posing health risks to everyone that rides the subways.”
City Councilmember Daniel Dromm of Jackson Heights finds it outrageous that there are only 20 pest control workers in charge of battling the growing rat problem throughout the entire city.
“Laying off the workers has only made the situation worse since I am now receiving numerous rodent complaints from Queens business owners and residents,” said Dromm. “We have to find a way to rehire the workers before it gets out of hand and the rats take over.”
City Councilmember Julissa Ferreras of the East Elmhurst district argued that rodents and other pests are threatening the quality of life for all New Yorkers.
“This poses a health risk and we must find a way to bring back those who were on the frontlines, trying to keep our city safe,” said Ferreras. “A solution needs to be found before it gets completely out of control.”
“The laying off of pest control workers should not have been an option last year,” Ferreras added. “Public health should never suffer at the hands of budget constraints.”
