Eastbourne mother's horror at rat infestation in kitchen

Rachael Hudson, of Gladstone Close, says the stress of finding the rodents in her kitchen has brought her to tears – and her landlord is not doing anything about it.

Miss Hudson, who lives in the house with her partner and two young children, said, “It makes me feel sick being here. It’s horrible I have to bring a baby into this.

“It doesn’t feel like my home any more, I don’t feel safe. I’m constantly looking for something moving.

“We are really clean people, we have done nothing to deserve this.

“The size of one of the rats was unbelievable. When I saw it I ran into the hallway and collapsed in tears.”

The council sent an exterminator over who left traps which caught two rats. They returned for a follow-up visit on Monday (February 6) and left more traps.

The family say they have been calling their landlord, Stonewater Housing Association, continuously since the problem started in December, but have had no help.

Tina Rea, regional director of Stonewater Housing Association for the south, said, “There have been no further reports of rats since January 13. We were advised of the situation on December 19.

“We have carried out a number of repairs to prevent rats from entering the customer’s home.

“It is of note that this property is only 26 years old, it is in good condition.

“In the last four years we have replaced the kitchen, windows, doors, carried out external decorations and repairs and attended to carry out more than 30 separate reactive repairs at the customers request.”