VietNamNet Bridge – Mice ravaging in residential areas in Ward 15, Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City has risen to alarming levels. Rats run around regardless of the day or night. They are not afraid of people and people begin being afraid of mice.

Mice everywhere

Local residents said that mice ravaging has been a fact here for many years. The density of mice increases every year and if there is a survey, perhaps the density of mice is higher than the population density.

VietNamNet’s correspondents went to the back of a house on Tran Thanh Tong Road, Ward 15. On the large yard were two old people who were sipping tea and chatting. Between them were a plate of cakes and a pot of tea. Pieces of crusts fell down from the cakes that the two old people were eating. Suddenly, four fat mice rushed to eat every crust.

At a clearing surrounded by apartments, dozens of mice ran on the ground, climbed into waste baskets to seek food. Seeing people, the mice did not even notice. They even did not run away when they were chased by man.




Mr. Tran Kien Trung, who has been living in this area for many years, said rats from underground flocked into his home to look for food. People have tried to prevent them but they failed. At night, they could not sleep well because of rats.

"Without measures to eradicate them, soon rats will attack man," a local woman said worriedly.

Local people told VietNamNet that they took many measures to kill rats, such as rat glue and traps cage, but these tools can catch one mouse each time and these methods are incapable of reducing the number of existing mice.

It is quite funny that cats in this area are scared of mice. When mice come in swarms, rummage around houses, cats quickly jump up to asylum.

Local people are worried that one day mice can cause diseases.

The authorities help

Ward 15 has 12 blocks in which eight blocks have canals. We walked along these canals, which run along Tan Son Nhat, Pham Van Bach, Nguyen Si Sach and Nguyen Phuc Chu roads. Along the roadsides, garbage is piled up and garbage baskets are placed along the edge of canals, covering mouse caves.

Mr. Hai Huy, 80, a local resident, met us in a roadside café and told us about the story of this area.

He said, before 1975, this area is the safety belt for the Tan Son Nhat airport. Thousands of hectares stretching from Truong Chinh Street in Tan Binh Dsitrict to Quang Trung Street in Go Vap District were covered by wild grass and reeds. In the late 80's and early 90's, people began flocking to this area to build houses.

Roads were opened and canals were dredged. However, the people kept throwing garbage into canals, which was the source of food for rats.

When the food in garbage in canals is not enough, rats find ways into houses; proliferate to become the current disaster.

It turned out that the mouse disaster was caused by the human. Yet today, canals are still full of garbage.
Rats are everywhere

Dr Tran Quang Minh, deputy director of the Tan Binh District Center for Preventive Medicine admitted that mice’s ravage in Ward 15 is at an alarming rate. He said the district authorities have plans to destroy rats in this area.

He said killing rats with chemicals in improper ways will seriously affect the environment. Therefore, the authorities encourage local people to clean up the environment, to stop rubbish disposal to the environment, and to use mousetraps. After that, the Center will hold training course on using chemicals to kill rats while still ensure the safety of domestic animals and humans.

Tran Chanh Nghia