School system official says 1 rat found in 2 months
A Jan. 25 article that appeared in the Starr’s Mill High School newspaper said the school is showing signs of rat infestation. School system Facilities Director Mike Satterfield said one rodent has been caught in the past two months, adding that his department is aware of the problem and will eliminate it.
Satterfield, who was at the school on Jan. 27, said the head custodian at the school informed him Monday that he had caught one rodent in the past two months and replaced two ceiling tiles.
Satterfield said numerous ceiling tiles were pulled in the 700 hall Monday morning. Staff also went into the courtyard and found that the entry point was an expansion joint. That area was sealed Monday morning, said Satterfield.
The article in The Prowler, the school’s online newspaper, noted that the vermin problem that has tormented Starr’s Mill for years has returned with a vengeance after taking only one semester off. Now, the issue will have to be resolved again in the coming months to keep the Mill as new as the renovations intended it to be.
“During the summer renovations, the construction workers were only tasked with fixing any previous damage the rats had caused. They did not have to exterminate the rats. This means the vermin could have been in the school all of first semester, just unnoticed,” The Prowler article said.
Satterfield on Jan. 24 said his first knowledge of the current issue came 2-3 weeks ago. Satterfield said he contacted the contractor, who noted that his crew did not see any rodents during the renovation.
Commenting on the issue, Satterfield said, “We were not aware of any rodent issues until a few weeks ago when we received a work order from the school. Our custodial supervisor has been working with the head custodian to help eliminate the problem. We will continue to monitor the situation and bring in additional help if needed. I spoke with our contractor who renovated the school this summer and he indicated that they did not see any rodents at the school during the renovation.”
That said, Satterfield said his department will stay on top of the issue until it is resolved.
I had rats in my shed and a couple of rat snakes took care of the issue..and these were big suckers.