A video taken by a frustrated resident shows rats rummaging through discarded rubbish in a back alley of a residential area.

The footage was shot on Wednesday in the alley behind Infirmary Street, Blackburn, and shows at least three of the rodents scurrying up and down the alley amongst black bin bags, empty washing powder boxes, and discarded food containers.

The resident, who did not wish to be named said: “Every alley in the area is a mess and there are rats everywhere.

“There are rats coming into my mum’s garden and a couple of weeks ago she found one in her kitchen; she had to spend £200 on pest control to sort it out and they said the problem was out of control.

“The streets that are really bad are Dyson Street, Mosley Street and Infirmary Street.”

Lancashire Telegraph:

The resident said he’s spotted raw meat, dirty nappies and household waste in some areas, and says the rats are huge and aren’t deterred by the presence of humans.

He also said the bin men don’t take the bags left out by householders which makes the problems even worse.

He added: “Round Dyson Street is the worst, it stinks.

“My mum has been in contact with the council that many times and she’s sick of it because nothing gets done.

“They need cameras putting up. Leach Street has cameras and that’s ok, but people come from different streets and just dump their rubbish in other people's alleys.”

Lancashire Telegraph:

The Infirmary area of Blackburn has been blighted by littering for years, and in August 2019 the council vowed to clampdown on the situation after locals said they were angry with the problem of fly-tippers dumping mess in the streets.

They said the problem centres on three back alleys off Rockcliffe Street with people saying black bin bags were scattered everywhere and were making the spot look like a ‘third world country’.

And in February council bosses began proceedings to buy up an empty home on Infirmary Street after 14 complaints were made about a rat infestation in the area due to rubbish build up.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Environment boss at Blackburn with Darwen Council, Cllr Jim Smith said: "There's a real issue with fly-tipping in this area; we know about it and we are working with the landlords on this.

"There's a high number of rented properties in that area and unfortunately some people who rent the properties don't give a damn,

"Over the Covid period there has been a rise in people saying they've seen rats but that's because people are at home more, looking out of their windows.

"Look, it's a crime to fly-tip like that and anyone caught doing it will be prosecuted."