The St James Health Department is to work with businesses in the parish to tackle the rodent problem facing mainly commercial areas.

“What we want to do is to get the business community within the commercial space to conduct their own rodent control programme,” Chief Public Health Inspector Shericka Lewis told the Jamaica Observer following the monthly meeting of the St James Municipal Corporation last Thursday.

“Each of them should have a rodent control plan to include good sanitation practices… What we are finding is that because most of them are not securing their waste on their property, it is contributing to the garbage problem within the city,” said Lewis.

There have been concerns about rats in sections of St James over time, and recently a skip was removed from North Street in Montego Bay after a video showing rats roaming the area that houses restaurants, supermarkets, and other businesses went viral.

According to Lewis, improper disposal of waste has been contributing to the problem and that is why the health department is working to have the business operators get involved in the fight to tackle the proliferation of rodents.

“Some of them, they pay individuals to take out the garbage, and these individuals, some of sound mind, just throw it anywhere along the city,” said Lewis.

“These are some of the things that are creating the problem, so we want them to create a rodent control plan for their particular business, that is the next step,” Lewis added.

The latest plan comes after a successful rodent control exercise was carried out in the commercial centre of Montego Bay by the St James Health Services and a private group on May 23, Labour Day.

“We partnered with the St James Municipal Corporation, National Solid Waste Management Agency (NSWMA), and a private entity — Cari-Med. When we conducted this programme, there were 18 priority areas that were treated for rodents within the commercial district,” said Lewis.

“A total of 401 bait stations containing 50 grams or about five blocks of the rodenticide were set. Additionally, approximately 250 loose blocks were set in the boroughs that the rodents created,” added Lewis.

She pointed out that some areas in Montego Bay have seen improvements as a result of the programmes that were initiated.

“The main area that we saw the greatest uptake of the rodenticide included Harbour Street and South Street. Other areas that showed good uptake included Sam Sharpe Square, Strand Street, and St James Street,” said the chief public health inspector.

She said that they are so far pleased with the results of the work that has been done in sections of Montego Bay.

“It is, in our estimation, that the programme is definitely effective as the baits are being consumed by these rodents and they are actually dying. The team has been out collecting the dead rodents and they are disposed of, and there is also a noted odour of dead rats within the space,” Lewis told the Observer.

In light of the gains, Lewis said the team at St James Health Services will push on with its work of dealing with the rodents.

“We will continue our rebating exercises and we will conduct our final evaluation at the end of this month, and a comprehensive report will be forwarded,” said Lewis.