Residents have demanded action to tackle a rat infestation at a council-owned tower block in Reading.

Tenants of 205 Riversley Court, one of the Coley High Rise tower blocks on Wensley Road, have complained about a ‘sea of rats the size of cats’ which are eating away at the building.

They say the issue, which has also affected the other two high rises, has been going on for years and the smell is ‘vile’.

Reading Chronicle:

Mellissa Chisholm, a tenant at 205 Riversley Court, said: “The council keep telling us that it is insulated and they cannot get through.

“If one rat makes it in here, I am camping outside the Civic Centre.

“We don’t sleep in our bedrooms because all we can hear is them chewing through. The rats are eating the cladding.

“I saw a sea of rats a couple of weeks ago. The whole floor was covered where the bins are.

“We see them go into a woman’s property. Some of them are the size of cats.”

Maria Jones, who also lives at Riversley Court, added: “It is getting out of hand. It has been two years or more.

“They do not run away from you. They go out early in the morning. It stinks rotten.”

The council said it has worked with a specialist pest control company to bait the rats which has led to a significant decrease in the population, while it has also provided extra bins and increased collections.

Abdullah Mohammed, who lives on the ground floor, said: “We have a big problem. In my kitchen window they made a hole.

“When it is very hot you come in the house and you cannot even sit in the sitting room.

“I have lived here for 12 years. Two weeks ago, I applied for new housing because of the smell of the rats.

“One day there will be an eruption of disease.”

Laurence Griffiths, another tenant, said: “One day a kid will catch it and it will kill them.

“It is endangering people’s health. Sooner or later we are going to get sick.

“They are working their way up. They have to move people out of the blocks and fumigate.”

The cleaning team, based at Riversley Court, have echoed the tenants concerns.

One said: “Sometimes I cannot go into the cleaning room because the smell is so bad.

“The cleaners need to eat here. Sometimes outside, at 6am, there are about 20 rats. The rats go to all the blocks.”

Mr Griffiths described the smell in the cleaners’ equipment room as ‘vile’.

The council have agreed to invest £3.35 million in sprinklers and other fire safety works at the Coley High Rise tower blocks.

Mr Griffiths said: “I would not be surprised if there is a fire here with the rats eating out the wires.

“The intercom stopped working for two weeks. They have fixed it about four times now.“

RBC will send further information to residents, ‘reminding them of the importance of rinsing out containers before recycling them’.

The local authority will also explore the possibility of increasing the collections of recyclable waste while the problem continues.

A spokesman for the council said: “The issue of rats at Wensley Road is ongoing and we have been working with a professional pest control company and local residents to remove food sources which have caused the problem.

“We acknowledge this has been a difficult problem to eradicate.

“We thank residents for their efforts to date and while some progress has been made, there remains more to do.

“We would ask them to continue with these efforts over the coming weeks.”

Those who live and work at Riversley Court have also raised concerns about a lift which they say sometimes suddenly drops by around two metres on the second floor when going up.

Ms Chisholm said she has ‘seen kids come out screaming’ after using the lift, while Mr Griffiths raised concerns that one day it would drop all the way to the ground floor.

A cleaner added: “The lift stops on the second floor and it goes down. I am scared.”

The council inspected the lifts earlier this month and said it is operating as it should, without any drop.