A POLICE station in Mijas has been battling a growing rat infestation, with numbers said to have increased dramatically over the past month.
Civil Guard officers have reported being forced to work alongside rats in the barracks.
While the issue was first detected some time ago, the situation has worsened rapidly in recent weeks.
The rats have been seen in several areas of the building, including changing rooms, the courtyard and even the detention area, raising serious concerns about hygiene and safety.
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The Unified Association of Civil Guards (AUGC) said the measures adopted so far are ‘clearly insufficient’.
The union group has stressed that this is no longer an isolated problem and has urged the head of the Malaga Command, Colonel Roberto Blanes, to step in and deal with the problem urgently.
In a statement, the AUGC warned that rats ‘are the animals that transmit the most diseases’ and can also cause damage to pipes, walls and electrical wiring.
It added that, according to environmental health experts, simply using traps or poison is not enough.
They say a comprehensive plan that combines structural prevention, environmental management and professional control is required to combat the infestation.
Therefore, the Civil Guard organisation is now calling for a specialist company to be hired to deal with the infestation permanently and protect the more than 130 people who work at the facilities, as well as the families who live at the site.
The complaint comes just weeks after the AUGC highlighted the poor condition of many barracks across the province.
Only 59% of the 74 Civil Guard sites in Malaga are in good condition, with the rest rated as fair (31%) or poor (10%). Many of the buildings are over 50 years old, something the association says helps explain ongoing problems like this one.
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