View report page

11
on the 5th July, 1948, continued to work satisfactorily and during 1950 the burial of seven bodies
was undertaken by the Council. The total expenditure incurred in dealing with these cases was
£35 4s. 0d., of which £25 14s. Id. had been recovered by the end of the year.
Disinfestation.—The campaign against the bed-bug was continued on the lines described in detail
in the 1948 report, 517 dwellings, involving 1,033 rooms, being treated with D.D.T. by means of the
special van containing a petrol-driven compressor unit and the necessary hosing and spraying
apparatus. Included in the 517 dwellings were 80 requisitioned premises and 17 municipal flats
where bugs were found.
Treatment of verminous furniture by hydrocyanic acid gas, which has been carried out, in specially
constructed vans, under contract by the Council for many years, has been continued, more particularly
in the case of removals to fresh housing accommodation. In 1950 the furniture of 251 families (of
whom 239 were being rehoused) was dealt with by this method. In addition 6,652 verminous articles
of bedding were disinfected by steam.
Verminous Persons.—The Council's Cleansing Station in Lisson Grove dealt with 1,362 vermininfested
persons: adults 506 (men 474, women 32); children 856 (boys 272, girls 584).
Shelter.—It was not found necessary during the year to make use of the shelter accommodation
provided at 217, Lisson Grove, under section 195 (4) of the Public Health (London) Act, 1936, for
families temporarily dispossessed of their homes. The room set aside for this purpose was, however,
utilised for other public health work.
Rodent Control.—Complaints received numbered 1,602, and 1,441 premises were found to be infested
by rodents. Of this number, 1,278 premises were treated by the Council's staff and in the remaining
163 cases the owners or occupiers employed a commercial firm or carried out treatment themselves.
The black or ship rat continued to be the predominant rodent within the Borough, infestations
being discovered at 884 premises. The brown rat was located at 223 premises, and mice infestations
were found in 334 instances.
Under the "block control" scheme instituted in November, 1949, twenty-nine blocks, comprising
1,634 premises, were inspected and test-baited during the year. As a result, 243 infestations were
discovered. In 160 cases the owners or occupiers requested treatment by the Council's staff; in the
remaining 83 premises commercial firms were engaged or action was taken by the occupiers. Treatment
of rodent infestations was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the Ministry of
Agriculture and Fisheries.
A minimum charge of 10s. per treatment continued to be made in respect of work carried out by
the Council's Rodent Control Service at premises other than dwellings, but as from the 1st June,
1950, the charge of 5s. per treatment for residential properties was abolished and a free service
provided except in cases where the infestation appeared to be the result of gross negligence.
The Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949, which came into operation on the 31st March, 1950,
provides, among other things, that it shall be the duty of every local authority to take steps to secure,
as far as practicable, that their district is kept free from rats and mice. It is also the duty of occupiers
of land (which includes buildings) to notify the local authority of the presence of rats or mice in
substantial numbers on such land. The Act, which supersedes the Infestation Order, 1943, and the
Rats and Mice (Destruction) Act, 1919, authorises the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries to make
grants of one-half of the non-recoverable expenditure incurred by local authorities.
The degree of co-operation by owners and occupiers has been such that it was not necessary to
serve notices under the Act requiring specific treatment or structural alterations.
Routine sewer baiting was carried out by the Council's staff in January and July.
Dog Nuisance.—Contraventions of the bye-law relating to the fouling of footways by dogs reported
by the streets nuisance inspector resulted in summonses in 25 cases. In all of these convictions were
secured and penalties imposed, costs being awarded to the Council in one case. The total number
of prosecutions taken by the Council since the bye-law came into operation in 1928 is 456.
Pigeons.—Nuisance from these birds was reported in relation to a church, a public building and
a block of flats, and the complaints were referred to an approved pigeon catcher.
Mosquitoes.—Two complaints of mosquitoes were received and satisfactorily dealt with.
Noise.—Complaints of 22 noise nuisances were received. They were concerned with such diverse
matters as radio, street musicians, dogs, machinery, demolition operations, night baking, refrigerators
in shops, and social gatherings of various kinds. The majority of these nuisances were abated after
action by the sanitary inspector and streets nuisance inspector. In other cases, where upon