Rat Infestation At Central Park Playground Leaves Parents Furious: Report

CENTRAL PARK, NY — Rats are taking over a playground in Central Park, and parents are not too pleased. The rodents are getting bold at Central Park's Toll Family Playground, appearing near benches, grassy areas and play structures in the middle of the day, according to a report.

Rat sightings have angered local Upper West Side parents who bring their children to the playground — located within the park steps away from the Central Park West and West 96th Street entrance — and say not enough is being done to deter the vermin, CBS New York reported.

“We just got here like 20 minutes ago, and I just saw a mouse in the sprinkler and then there was like three rats just in the border,” parent Lauren Frank told CBS New York.

"It’s totally disgusting,” Frank said. “People are complaining about it, but obviously, nothing is being done."

City Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal, who represents the Upper West Side, told CBS New York that the city Parks Department must find a safe way to get rid of the rats. Rosenthal told the news station that poison is no longer an option due to urban hawk populations eating the rats and getting sick

Read the full CBS New York report here.

Photo by Eden, Janine and Jim via Flickr/Creative Commons