RESIDENTS in Eastrop are today on alert after rats were spotted in a garden.

People in Eastrop Lane have been advised to be vigilant after the pests were spotted, with the council's environmental health team launching an investigation.

Residents have been advised to call in a pest controller should they spot any rats in their home or garden.

But the borough council have also denied rumours that they were asking residents to put rat poison in their gardens, saying that the council has not put any poison down either.

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s head of environmental services, Tom Payne, said: “Our Environmental Health team has been carrying out investigation work following a complaint about rat activity in a private garden in Eastrop Lane.

“We have written to nearby residents to ask them to remove any food such as bird feeders from their gardens, provided advice on the steps they can take to keep rats out of their homes and advised them to contact a pest controller if they have rat activity on their property.

“We will continue to work with local residents and plot holders at the nearby allotment to investigate any issues which may be causing this.

"Residents concerned about this should contact the council on 01256 844844.”

The council also confirmed in a letter to residents that poisons purchased in shops "are unlikely to be effective", and that professional pest controllers should be contacted if they notice any "activity".

The Gazette reported in December how one Basingstoke pest controller noted more rat incidents in the town than the previous year.

Shane Jones, a pest control technician at Kempshott-based RIDTEK, told the Gazette his team had seen a roughly 20 per cent rise in call-outs to rat infestations compared to last year.

“The main reason is the first lockdown. There are big areas that were kind of abandoned. Industrial estates.

"Rats were having to move into town to find food. All the bin stores in all the buildings were empty. Those are the places where rats like to go to get food,” he said.

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