A North Belfast mum says she is fed up with living in a 'rat infested' street where they are surrounded by rodents the size of cats.
Pauline Rooney, of Eia Street, says that in the seven years since she moved into her home, she has had to deal with a rat problem because local residents are unable to put their bins away properly.
The alleyway behind her home is overgrown and unadopted, which means residents are unable to bring their bins into the small yards behind their homes and they have to stay out on the street all week long.
She says this has led to large amounts of rats descending on the area, making residents' lives hell.
Mum-of-two Pauline told Belfast Live: "For the past seven years I have had to bring my children up completely surrounded by rats. It is no condition for any of our children to be forced to play in.
"Everywhere you go you see these huge rats running around that are the size of a cat or a small dog.
"I feel like the entire time I have been here I have gone back and forth to different meetings trying to get the issue resolved but nothing ever seems to happen. The council pest control has been here this week and put poison in the drains, but I doubt it will do much as there are so many of them.
"There have been countless mornings that our children are waking up to dead rats lying in the street. I even have CCTV footage of rats jumping out of a bin lorry at the men collecting the bins while others scurry about the street, it is shocking.
"The issue is the alleyway behind our homes which is so overgrown, we can't put our bins away in the back and as nobody has a front yard the bins are stuck on the street all the time. But because the alley is unadopted, nobody seems to care or want to do anything about it."
Pauline also says that the alley has become a danger to those living near it in the event of an emergency.
She continued: "If there was a fire at the front of our homes we would be trapped, there is no way we would be able to get out of the back. Nobody should have to live like this."
The council has said that the alleyway is the responsibility of the landowner and that it has baited sewers and gullies in the area as part of a sewer baiting programme.
A Belfast City Council spokesperson added: "The alleyway in question is not adopted and therefore the maintenance of the alleyway is the responsibility of the landowner. We are aware of reports of rats in this area and are currently baiting sewers and gullies as part of Belfast City Council's sewer baiting programme. We would encourage residents to contact the service directly to report any problems they may be experiencing by calling 02890270431 or emailing pestcontrol@belfastcity.gov.uk."
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