New York may never win its war on rats
纽约鼠患全美最严重:Video of rats scampering(1) across a New York City restaurant floor may have disturbed viewers worldwide but some experts say the rodents(2) are less dangerous than other creatures drawn to restaurants -- humans.
The video broadcast on television a week ago showed rats running wild at a KFC/Taco Bell restaurant just one day after the outlet had passed a city Health Department inspection.
It took a bite out of the share price of parent company Yum Brands Inc. and forced a city Health Department shake-up(3) that removed the inspector who conducted the review from duty and led to 13 more restaurant closures on Thursday.
The owner of the KFC/Taco Bell franchise(4), ADF Companies, has closed 10 of its restaurants until they pass inspections, and the city closed three other restaurants because of unsanitary(5) conditions or mice, the Health Department said.
Yum Brands on Friday hired an urban pest(6) control expert to review standards at its New York City restaurants.
The Health Department warned that greater threats to public health include restaurant employees who fail to wash their hands or food stored at improper temperatures.
One epidemiologist(7) agreed.
"I would worry much more about poor hygiene on the part of employees of a restaurant than mice or rats living in the basement," said Philip Alcabes, a professor at New York's Hunter College School of Health Sciences.
"If you were to ask me would I eat in a restaurant where there were rats, I would say I probably already do."
Still, the incident reinforces(8) New York's reputation of having a more severe rat problem than other big cities.
New York's crowded quarters force restaurants to store trash indoors until it can be collected, providing rats with an indoor food source.
In addition, New York's real estate boom means construction is pervasive(9), scattering rats to a wider geographic area.
"I once opened up a door in a restaurant and a rat ran between my feet," Leonard Douglen, executive director of the New York Pest Management Association said. "The guy warned me that you have to knock on the door first to scatter them away. I couldn't solve the problem because it was structural."
纽约餐馆遍地跑老鼠的录像让世人震惊，但是一些专家认为最大的威胁并非这些啮齿类动物，而是人类自己。
一周前，电视中播放KFC/Taco Bell餐馆中老鼠横行的录像。此录像拍摄时，KFC/Taco Bell刚于前一天通过了市卫生部检查。
这导致其总公司Yum Brands股价下降，一名当值卫生部检察员的离职和周四13家餐馆停业。
卫生部宣布：KFC/Taco Bell授权公司ADF已经关闭10家餐馆等候检查，市卫生部还因不卫生条件或者鼠患关闭了3家其他餐馆。
周五Yum Brands请来一名城市危害控制专家为其在纽约的餐馆重新评估。
卫生部警告称餐馆工作人员不洗手和食物储存温度不当为更大的威胁。
流行病专家深以为然。
纽约亨特卫生科学院教授Philip Alcabes说：“比起地下室的老鼠，我更担忧餐馆工作人员的糟糕卫生状况。”
“如果你问我是否会在有老鼠的饭馆用餐，我会回答多半早就用过了。”
无论如何，这件事加强了纽约是全美鼠患最严重城市的说法。
纽约房屋过于拥挤，导致餐馆垃圾无法及时输出，为老鼠在餐馆内寻找食源提供便利。
而且纽约的建筑区域持续扩张，老鼠们的活动范围也逐渐增大。
纽约有害物控制协会执行理事Leonard Douglen说：“一次我在餐馆中打开一扇门，老鼠窜出来绕着我的脚跑。店员警告我说开门前最好先敲敲门，以便把它们吓跑。我无法解决这个问题，因为是建筑结构问题。” It‘s terrible！
页:
[1]