Dirty nappies, mouldy onions, half-eaten kebab meat on the road… these sickening sights greet residents blighted by the Birmingham bin strikes daily.
And fed-up locals have demanded the council act now to end the crisis that has left locals fearing for their health as huge rats scurry among the debris. And it’s not just humans who are suffering. One woman told how she found a dead cat, feared to have been killed by poison laid to tackle the ravaging rodents.
Talks between council leaders and unions resume today amid concerns the strikes over job cuts, which started on March 11, could spread to other cities. But residents lined up to share their hell of living among the filth.
Housing maintenance boss Jonathan Ward, checking on properties in Sparkbrook, said: “I’ve seen rats as big as cats, they’re getting in houses and cars. The people in our properties are actually getting cats to kill the rats it’s making things worse for us.
“We’re not animals but we’re living like animals.
“This is people’s health. It’s a danger to life to be living like this. We’re no better than if we were living down that drain. We’re tripping over rubbish, reversing over the rubbish.
“Even if the dispute is resolved the backlog of garbage that will need to be collected will take forever. You wouldn’t believe this is happening in the UK. My road is scuttling with rats. We’re fighting a losing battle.”
The council claimed it will be cleaning the rubbish away by the weekend. But Jonathan added: “Why the hell can’t they do it now? If this isn’t an emergency I don’t know what is.”
Mohammed Ali, 18, lives in Balsall Heath Park, normally a green sanctuary within inner-city Birmingham. Children play on nearby swings near the mounds of rubbish and pigeons swoop down to pick at the at the mouldy contents of ripped open black bin bags strewn across the streets.
Mohammed said: “It is diabolical. It’s a health hazard and it’s got way out of hand.
“We need the council to act now. We can’t live with this any more we need action fast.”
Munar Moha-mmed, 40, shopping with his family in Sparkbrook, added: “My bins haven’t been collected in four weeks and it’s hard to get a slot at the tip. It’s making my kids sick. They still collect council tax.”
Chair of Friends of Spark Green Park, in Sparkbrook, Sadia Khan, told how she found the dead cat during a litter pick.
Sadia added: “It was a healthy adult size with no signs of any injury to it.
“We took it to the vet who couldn’t confirm it died from poisoning but it’s a suspicion that we have. I’ve seen on Facebook, people have lost their cats and it’s a real fear that they’re getting poisoned. We’re trying to control this rodent infestation and it’s disgusting.
“The situation is worse in these very inner city areas because they are overpopulated.
“We have a Muslim community and it was heartbreaking at Eid, when we mark the end of Ramadan with food, there are leftovers, but no bins collections.
“We’re living in rubbish. We feel anxious to go and enjoy parks and public places. It’s distressing.”
James Ikenna, 48, said: “I’m from Nigeria originally and this has made the news in my home country. My friend called me and said, ‘Is this where you are living, James, in Birmingham? Where there is all the rubbish?’
“It’s embarrassing. It’s shocking that this is happening in Britain.
“But it shows how vital our binmen are. They deserve more respect than they get.”
Musician Darren Adderley, 55 lives with his 15-year-old daughter Isabella in Balsall Heath. He said: “The problem that we’ve got in this area is we have a lot of small houses and a lot of small rows, so the rubbish really builds up. Also, at night, people are dumping rubbish.
“Personally, I’m with the bin men though. This is to do with central government, not just Birmingham city council.
“They are picking on the bin workers because if they break the bin workers’ union Unite which is very strong, they can start breaking up everybody else’s.”
Surveying a mountain of bin bags opposite his home, he added: “Every morning that has got bigger.”
Fazia Tahir, who lives nearby, added: “I can’t open the door to my back garden because of the mountains of rubbish. It’s like being in a third world country. The smell every time I go outside makes me vomit.
“The bags have been ripped open by cats and rats. The vermin issue is making me sick. I’ve called Birmingham city council, but they do nothing. They don’t help.
“I could move out of Birmingham. It’s absolutely filthy.”
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