London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Kensington 1964
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]
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| Type of Property | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local Authority | Dwelling Houses | All other (including Business & Industrial) | ||||
| III. Total number of properties inspected in the course of survey under the Act | 1 | 91 | 5 | 97 | ||
| Number of such properties found to be infested by:- | ||||||
| Common rat | Major | - | - | - | - | |
| Minor | ||||||
| Ship rat | Major | |||||
| Minor | - | - | - | - | ||
| House mouse | Major | |||||
| Minor | - | 17 | - | 17 | ||
| IV. Total number of properties otherwise inspected (e.g.,when visited primarily for some other purpose) | - | - | - | - | ||
| Number of such properties found to be infested by:- | ||||||
| Common rat | Major | - | - | - | - | |
| Minor | - | - | - | - | ||
| Ship rat | Major | - | - | - | ||
| Minor | - | - | - | - | ||
| House mouse | Major | - | ||||
| Minor | - | - | - | - | ||
| V. Total inspections carried out - including re-inspections | 64 | 2,329 | 223 | 2,616 | ||
| VI. Number of infested properties (in Section II, III and IV) treated by the Local Authority | 10 | 558 | 49 | 617 | ||
| VII. Total treatments carried out - including re-treatments | 11 | 584 | 54 | 649 | ||
Destruction of rats in Council's sewers
Destruction of rats in sewers has been carried out on a systematic
basis of continuous baiting of the sewers using a new acute poison,
fluoracetamide.
Baits are laid at access points throughout the sewers, of which
there are ninety-three miles in the borough. These points comprise side
entrances connected by galleries to the sewers and ventilating shafts
immediately over the sewers. There are over 1,600 of these baiting points,
but it is never possible to bait all the points at one treatment owing to
road repairs and the presence of parked vehicles.
The last treatment included the laying of non-poison test bait.
Observations were made to ascertain the number of points where there was
still evidence of a rat infestation, however small. The results which have
been obtained show a remarkable decrease in the rat population of the sewers.