Rats Spotted at Westlake Middle School; No Infestation
Rats returned to Westlake Middle School this week.
Mount Pleasant School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Susan Guiney said two wood rats were found at the school on Tuesday. The first was discovered in the morning in a hallway and was killed by a school custodian. The second rat was found in the cafeteria during the first lunch period in early afternoon but escaped.
No students were harmed and no food was contaminated in the cafeteria, Guiney said. After spotting the rat in the cafeteria, students ate in other locations in the school while the area was cleaned by custodians, she said.
There has been no subsequent sightings at the school, Guiney stressed. “There’s no infestation of rats,” she said.
Guiney said there was an increase in wood rat activity at the middle school/high school campus two years ago while renovation work was being done at EF Academy, a nearby boarding school.
The superintendent said district officials are taking steps to ensure the rodents don’t return, including the placement of additional traps inside and outside the building. Outside doors have been closed to prevent any rats from entering the school from the nearby wooded area, she said.
Exterminators regularly visit the school, Guiney said; however, under state law districts cannot use pesticides in schools.
Guiney informed parents about the situation via e-mails and her newsLINK e-mail.
In the newsLINK correspondence, Guiney outlined the steps being taken to protect students.
“The district staff remains vigilant in ensuring that food is stored safely and securely, kitchen areas and food service locations are sanitized, that traps are set and monitored, and that communication to parents is informative,” she stated.
As part of the proposed 2016-17 budget that she will soon propose, Guiney said she has asked for money for masonry work to close any openings that rats could use to enter the schools.
