‘Never seen anything like this’: Rats infiltrate longtime South Boston homeowner’s property

BOSTON — A longtime South Boston resident is at wits end with unrelenting rats that have infiltrated his property and taken over the backyard.

Kevin Conroy has lived at his home on West Eighth Street for 30 years and has resided in South Boston for more than 50 years.

He describes the rodent invasion as a new issue that is “turning into a second job.”

The rodents have burrowed into multiple spots in his yard and have even crawled up onto his back porch on many occasions.

“It’s getting to the point where we can’t even use our yard or have people over,” Conroy told Boston 25 News. “My wife won’t even sit out there. It’s very bad.”

Conroy has increased visits from a pest control company.

They’ve pumped carbon monoxide and poison powder into burrows and dispersed a half dozen bait stations across the property.

“They started coming up out of the holes. They were dealt with as they came out of the holes,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Rodent complaints are on the rise in his South Boston community despite the neighborhood’s use of trash bins.

“What they’re doing now, it’s not working,” added Conroy. “This is unacceptable.”

Rat 311 complaints appear to be even more frequent in neighboring South End, which doesn’t use trash bins.

Boston 25 News captured rats scampering down Montgomery Street for hours in broad daylight last Thursday.

One rat crawled up into a vehicle from underneath, and another gnawed into a trash bag full of food scraps.

District 2 Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn has called for a hearing after renewing his push for a dedicated “rat czar” and a standalone pest control department in Boston.

Mayor Wu’s administration told Boston 25 News it’s already adapted its approach to handling rat hotspots in specific neighborhoods this summer.

“This summer, we are coordinating across departments to deploy several innovative, neighborhood-specific measures to address rodent hot spots. The City will continue to partner with community members to address activity quickly and improve their quality of life,” said a statement from a City of Boston spokesperson.

People from across Boston have been pitching different ideas in hopes that the City of Boston will consider new strategies aside from trash disposal education.

Some have pointed to other programs used in certain cases elsewhere.

That includes rodent killing dogs, based in the Washington DC area, and Cats at Work in Chicago, which adopts out feral cats that help deter rodents.

Boston 25 News spoke with Somerville’s “rat czar” about efforts that have been effective in that community.

“We’re trying to test as many things as possible for efficacy because rodent control doesn’t have a one size fits all,” said Somerville “rat czar” Colin Zeigler.

Zeigler said Somerville is focused on educating people about proper trash disposal followed by enforcement.

He said abatement is used as a last resort.

Somerville now offers two months of pest control through a third-party company and is making carbon monoxide and dry ice available.

“Carbon monoxide and dry ice are direct measures that can be taken and are very effective for spaces experiencing a lot of burrowing and activity,” he said.

Zeigler said human behavior is driving a large portion of the recent increase in rodent activity.

He said 723 individual properties were enrolled in Somerville’s rodent control program last year.

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