Infestation in block of ten flats is '˜like a biblical plague'

Affinity Sutton, which manages Elizabeth Court in Elizabeth Road, has confirmed the company is combatting the unwelcome visitors, a month after they were reported in the building.

Resident Peter Verlander said he had caught 30 mice since the outbreak last month, but something should have been done sooner.

Peter said: “I happened to open the drawers by my bed and all my clothes, all my shirts were covered in mouse poo. My sock drawer was also covered in mouse poo. Is this not a health issue?”

He added: “It’s being sorted out, but in my book a bit too late, it should’ve been sorted weeks ago and then we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

Affinity Sutton has said that it is a tenant’s responsibility to resolve an isolated infestation, but the group intervenes if it is wide-spread or in a communal area.

Poison has been laid down in multiple flats and a pest controller is conducting weekly inspections.

Fellow resident Richard Hillsey said he had no complaint with the management trying their hardest, but the infestation was ‘like a biblical plague’.

“They’re everywhere, in my kitchen, in my bedroom,” he said.

“It goes in waves, they breed every week or ten days, if they don’t keep on top of it there’ll be thousands in here.”

No one knows where the pests got in, but Richard said he can hear mice in the walls.

Also affected are neighbours Peter Jarvis and his partner Maureen Boyd, who can’t sleep for fear of the vermin she’s seen running across the floor.

The couple, now both in their 80s, have lived in the flat for almost ten years. Maureen said: “I don’t feel the same as I did before. I love my flat but I want to move out. I don’t want to settle here any more.”

A spokesperson for Affinity Sutton said: “Vermin infestation, although common, can be unpleasant and we appreciate the distress it is likely to cause. Our policy is that if the infestation is isolated to one property, it is the tenant’s responsibility to resolve. If a structural defect is identified which is contributing to the issue, we will take responsibility for getting this fixed.”

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