PORT ELIZABETH Want to sell your car?
Top prices paid on your low mileage, 2011 vehicle or newer. Call Sam Schultz
083 651 0552/041-390 1257 samuel.sc@tavcor.co.za
Corner of William Moffett & Mimosa Street, Port Elizabeth www.tavcormastercars.co.za X1R21NA9-030216-PX-tvmgro-tav
100 000 COPIES WEEKLY WEDNESDAY February 24, 2016 | 0 041 503 6111 | Email express@media24.com | www.peexpress.co.za |
PE Express Newspaper |
@PEExpress1
EDITOR: BETTIE GILIOMEE
RATS AS BIG AS CATS TERRORISE RESIDENTS
Playground plans for dump site CARALEE SCHEUN
M
ANY rats - which some believe are bigger than cats - will soon be driven out of the Kensington area with the construction of a playground.
According to residents, the empty plot on the corner of Mary Boyd and Byron Road, which has become an illegal dumping site since last year, is the reason for the rat infestion in the neighbourhood. “I cannot sleep in my house, because there are rats that are bigger than cats,” Estelle Schovell said earlier. The PE Express’s inquiries from the municipality about the situation and the maintenance of the area, has led a task force of the Department of Waste Management to investigate the problem. Although Morné Wagner, a resident, claimed that the municipality has done nothing to remove the rubble, Mthubanzi Mniki, a municipal spokesperson, said a plan had been put in place to keep those people that dump illegally away for good. According to Mniki, the “problem area” in Kensington gets cleared by municipal workers every two weeks. “But I’ve seen the photographs taken by the workers. It seems a week after clearing it is almost worse than before cleaning. Rubbish is dumped here just too quickly,” Mniki said. To counter illegal dumping, Mniki believes the municipality will turn the plot into a playground for children. “To convert the site into something useful is the best way to prevent an illegal dumping ground.” Wagner also believes the construction of a playground will keep the rubbish - and the rats - away for good. “There are lots of small children who come into the street who will certainly enjoy the playground. I just hope the park will be well maintained, because once the grass grows long, it will again attract litterbugs and vermin,” Wagner said. Mniki could not provide a time frame for the construction of the playground.
Minnie Wagner (75), a resident, shows the illegal dumping site which is said to be turned into a playground for children.
PHOTO: MORNE DU RANDT
SMS US: 45530 your comments or news. Start your SMS with the word ‘PE’, followed by your comment. Each SMS cost R1.50
The municipality says this area gets cleared every two weeks.
A rat caught and killed by one of the residents.
PHOTOS: SUPPLIED
Despatch........................Tel: 041 933 5352
X1R4PK4R-240216-PX-mfawal-cassie