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In addition to the cleansing of persons referred to
above, articles of personal clothing disinfested at the
Medicinal Baths during the year numbered 1,511.
Disinfection and Disinfestation
A summary of the routine work of the disinfecting staff
is shown in the following table:-
Houses disinfected after infectious disease 418 (625 rooms)
Houses disinfested after vermin 954 (2199 rooms)
Loads of furniture treated with hydrogen
cyanide 233
Total weight of furniture, bedding, etc. dealt with:-
300 tons, 13 cwt. 3 quarters, 9 lbs.
During the year 186 new Council flats became ready for
occupation, and the furniture of the ingoing tenants was
treated with H.C.N. This accounts for the large increase in
the number of loads (233) of furniture treated by this
poison gas compared with last year (63).
Prevention of Damage by Pests
The Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949, received
the Royal Assent in July, 1949, and came into operation on
31st March, 1950.
This Act, which repealed the Rats and Mice Destruction
Act, 1919, and revoked the Infestation Order, 1943, improves
the Council's powers in the control of rats and mice. In a
circular PDP 1950/1, dated 30th March, the Ministry of
Agriculture and Fisheries emphasised the important differences
between the 1919 Act and the new provisions. Attention was
called to the primary obligation now placed on the Council to
ensure that as far as practicable the borough is kept free from
rats and mice, an obligation which formerly rested on
occupiers of individual premises.
Section 4 of the Act enables the Council to serve notices
requiring rat destruction treatment and precautionary works
and the Council empowered the Medical Officer of Health, the
Deputy Medical Officer of Health, all sanitary inspectors and
the rodent officers to take necessary action.
A duty is imposed on occupiers of premises to notify
the Council of rodent infestation. It will be remembered
that this duty was originally placed on occupiers by the
Infestation Order, 1943. With the introduction of the 1949
Act, the Council decided that new publicity should be undertaken
in the borough, reminding the public of their duty imposed by
the Act to notify cases of rat infestation, and intimating
that the Council will deal with rat and mice infestation in
dwelling houses without cost to occupiers.
The Council's work under the Prevention of Damage by
Pests Act, 1949. (and the Rats and Mice (Destruction) Act, 1919,
and the Infestation Order, 1943) during the year continued
to attract the grant of 50% of the approved net expenditure
from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.
No grant aid is given in respect of expenditure on the
treatment of infestations at commercial or industrial premises,
the intention of the Ministry being that such expenditure shall
be fully recovered from the occupiers and should not fall on
public funds.