Fife Council is preparing to exterminate a horrendous rat infestation in the middle of Methil.
Workers will move in tomorrow to clear rubbish and lay poison to get rid of hundreds of rodents, some of which are said to have grown more than a foot long.
The news has been hailed by local councillor John O’Brien who has been pushing for action since it emerged the vermin was scurrying along the street at night and invading people’s homes.
One woman told how she has been unable to sleep in her bed for eight weeks due to the stench of dead rats which had burrowed their way into her wall cavities.
And a developer renovating nearby flats said he was attacked by a 12-inch rat as he worked.
The source of the problem is an area of waste ground on Wellesley Road where fly tippers have dumped piles of rubbish, including bags of decaying food.
Dave Paterson, the council’s Levenmouth area services manager, confirmed a clear-up was due to start this week.
“Fife Council do not own this land, but we will remove the rubbish from the area under legislation known as the Power to Advance Well-Being,” he said.
“Once cleared, our pest control officers will lay bait around the area to try to prevent any recurring infestation.
“We will then put in a monitoring regime to hopefully prevent any further issues.”
Mr Paterson said immediate steps were taken a fortnight ago to secure the lids of a number of bins that are often overflowing with rubbish.
This followed a number of complaints from residents about waste in the street attracting rats.
“This will help to limit their use to the householders and we are working with a number of other services within the council to resolve the wider problem of local fly tipping,” Mr Paterson said.
Councillor O’Brien said he was delighted with the response but added: “I mentioned this to officers more than a year ago.
“It’s ridiculous it’s taken so long to get action but I’m very pleased that Fife Council is at last going to take action to clean this site up.
“Maybe the residents will actually get some peace.”