‘A rat can’t be that big’: Evansville residents claim neighborhood-wide rat infestation

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) - Folks in an Evansville neighborhood have had issues with rats for years now.

14 News went out and spoke with neighbors who say some homes are overrun with rodents.

[Related: Baby nearly dies after being found with more than 50 rat bites, police say]

“I’m going to tell you something about this neighborhood. This whole neighborhood is full of rats,” said James Kent, a resident who has been living in Evansville for some time now.

Kemp tells us he started noticing the rat problem growing over the past few years.

“They started as little mice,” he said. “Then the big ones started to come in here.”

He said they aren’t average rats either.

“I’ve seen a rat one night and raccoon over there. I thought the raccoon was over there but it was a rat. I said a rat can’t be that big.”

He assures us they are.

“Some rats, you think they’re possums... I get up at 2 o’clock in the morning sometimes,” Kemp explained. “You can see the rats out here drinking water out of the driveways.”

According to officials, there is a rat abatement program in Evansville.

It’s been running for the past year.

Teressa Favors said they haven’t seen much of an effort in their neighborhood.

“Terminix they come each month, clearly nothing’s happened,” said Favors.

The building commission has a bait program as well. If you go to their offices and present an ID, you’ll get some bait.

Pest control hasn’t yet been near Linwood, though officials say they need to be notified, especially by a neighborhood association.

Kemp said he hopes someone can do something drastic.

“The city, they can do something about this problem we have, but right now, we have a problem. A big problem,” he tells us.

We’ve reached out to the building commission to try to learn more about how communities can get help, but we’re waiting on a response.

Folks in the area say they’re concerned about rats coming from the sewer as well as some of the parts of town that aren’t as cared for.

They say several abandoned homes and poorly maintained dumpsters have become breeding grounds for some monstrous pests.

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