An angry father has claimed he was forced to live next to an abandoned house infested with rats for over 20 YEARS.
David Nicholls, 59, has slammed council bosses for failing to act after he complained he heard rodents under his floor and saw them scurrying through his garden.
The father-of-two moved into his terraced house on Murray Avenue, in Abington, Northampton with his wife and two children in 1998.
READ MORE: Village overrun by cannibal rats jumping infesting trash cans and eating anything to survive
His next door neighbor had moved the previous year and since then he said the property had been neglected to the point that it had become a serious health hazard.
(Image: Emma Trimble/SWNS)
The unsightly house has broken windows, overgrown gardens, and the squalid interior is piled high with boxes and bags.
David said it had become a “rat hotel”, prompting some neighbors to move away.
(Photo: David Nicholls/SWNS)
“We all set traps for the rats – I found piles of their droppings in my attic,” he explained.
“There have been rats under my floor and in the walls – my kitchen roof is also covered in rat droppings between the joists. It’s unbelievable.
“There are children with families living on this road, but our appeals to the council continue to fall on deaf ears.”
He is now asking West Northamptonshire Council to take enforcement action to allow them to save the property and make it habitable again.
“It’s basically the perfect hotel for rats and my house is attached to it – the worry has affected my wife’s health.
“Fortunately, our two children have grown up and moved out, because I wouldn’t want them to live there.
(Image: Emma Trimble/SWNS)
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“I just can’t understand how the situation could go on for so long.”
A West Northamptonshire Council spokesperson said: “The council continues to investigate and move forward with actions in line with the latest findings from the Local Government Ombudsman.
“The council is not the owner of the property and is not responsible for the property.
“WNC confirms that, where possible, it will take enforcement action to secure property and neighborhood improvements where permitted by law.”
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