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2 million rats – one person to exterminate the vermin.
New York’s mayor has hired a “rat queen” to lead the hunt.
The salary for the anonymous rodent hunter: Up to 1.8 million kroner.
“There is NOTHING I hate more than rats,” wrote New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Twitter when he was looking for a “rat czar” in December.
He has declared war on rats. Now the czarina recruitment is complete and the American metropolis officially has an employee who will lead the fight against the rats that hide in sewers and on the city streets, reports New York Post. The working title is rat-czarina, and this one has the task of leading “The Rat Pack” (Råttgänget in Swedish) in the hunt for rats.
Several thousand applied for the job and one person was finally crowned. The mayor has not yet revealed who “she” is.
The job would go to a person who passionately hates rats and wants to wipe out the skyrocketing rodent population.
– The first thing I asked her was “how do you feel about rats?”. She was very clear. She said, “Listen, we have to get the rats and their population under control.”
2 million rats – a rat queen
It is a solid task that the new rat queen has before her. One study conducted in 2014 said there are about two million rats in New York – and that number seems to have only increased since then.
– Rodents should not be in our homes, they should not run across our yards and they should bite our children. It’s a sanitation problem, a health problem and it’s traumatizing, says Eric Adams.
During the pandemic, the city saved on its expenses, among other things by reducing garbage collection. It is believed to be a contributing factor to the recent increase in rats.
New York City Health Department data showed that their inspectors made twice as many observations in 2022 compared to the previous year. An increase from around 30,000 sightings to 60,000, according to NBC.
“A somewhat bloodthirsty tsarina”
It is a well-paying job that will bring the Tsarina up to 170,000 dollars, approximately 1.8 million Swedish kronor. But it is a demanding job. It is a numerical disadvantage and a job that, according to the advertisement, takes place around the clock.
“The job requires endurance and stagecraft. The ideal candidate is highly motivated and somewhat bloodthirsty. Determined to examine all solutions from different angles. Operational efficiency, data acquisition, technological innovations, waste management and batch slaughtering must be improved,” the city writes in the job advertisement.
Garbage disposal is one of the main focus areas in the rat hunt. Many residents of New York throw their garbage bags straight out into the street where they lie for up to 14 hours. Now the time will be reduced to ten hours, reports Fox 5.
In addition, ordinary bins with lids have started to be used to a greater extent, which has shown promising results. The same type of bins that many Swedes throw their garbage bags in.
According to Eric Adams, he has more tricks up his sleeve. New technology for rat slaughter to be presented soon.
– We have developed some new devices. Some are very promising.
The Rat Academy – free rat killing course
In the Bronx district, they have opened the doors to the “Rat Academy”. A training organized twice a month, where residents can get a free three-hour course on how to deal with the pests.
They also offer a three-day course for people in the pest industry on rat biology, behaviour, habitat and contributing factors to infestation.
Eric Adams is far from the first mayor of New York to try to curb the city’s rat population. Examples in history include the volunteer rat hunter gang “RATS”, which was founded in 1995. Two years later, in 1997, then-mayor Rudy Giuliani declared his own war against rats.
Facts
America’s most rat-infested cities in 2022
Source: American Pest Control Corporation Orkin.
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