The Ministry of Health has started a programme aimed at halving the rat population of Bridgetown in the short term, and keeping the numbers even lower permanently.
And the initiative coincides with the heightened appreciation of the importance to us of the value of Bridgetown as a World Cultural And Heritage Centre.
We are all glad for the designation, and the authorities are determined we will not be known as well for the multiplicity of rats in Bridgetown. The wonder is that the programme of elimination did not start earlier, for the proliferation of rats is not new to The City.
Godsend
Throughout its long history, Bridgetown, as a point of import and export of foodstuff, has been a “godsend” for rats, especially when one adds to the mix the alleys and tiny streets (the product of bygone days), some of which remain improperly maintained, or are yet to be refurbished by the central authority in the manner of a past Rocker’s Alley.
It is frightening to learn that as many as 1.2 million rats could be produced within a year by the breeding habits of 500 rat couples.
And more alarming is that the catchment area for the rat elimination programme extends from The City towards Westbury Road, and to Collymore Rock, including Bridge Road.
We can assume that research of the Ministry of Health shows these areas as vulnerable to the rodents, and that escape from The City itself to outlying districts must not be hospitable.
Barbadians will fully support this programme, because apart from the damage to property by the rodent, they may be exposed to the communicable diseases the rat is known to be a carrier of. The dreaded leptospirosis is one of them.
The National Conservation Commission reports that some people have adopted the nasty habit of leaving their food boxes on the benches in Independence Square, and that some folks even throw garbage on the ground, contributing to a higher infestation of rats.
This connection between human behaviour and the rise in rats ought to be a major lesson for all of us. Littering and disposing of bits of food make a feast for rats.
Duty
We all have a personal and national duty to assist the Ministry of Health’s efforts in the elimination of rats by ensuring we do our utmost in not making Bridgetown – or any other part of this island – inviting to rats.
We must all resolve to force the rats to bite on the poisonous bait by starving them of the delectable fragments of food we throw their way. Rats are bad news; their survival could lead to our very destruction.
