161 Rats Caught At SS15 Subang’s “Bubble Tea Street” By MBSJ

161 rats exterminated by MBSJ at SS15/4D in Subang Jaya

It’s not rare to see pests such as rats and cockroaches scuttling around the back lanes of our houses and public shops. But these sightings, frankly, make us uncomfortable and geli. Thankfully, there have been initiatives from the government to help rid our streets of rodents – most commonly rats – that are causing sanitation issues on our streets and at our favourite food haunts.

In the latest efforts to get rid of rats in street alleys, Subang Jaya City Council (MBSJ) launched a programme that had committee members and residents coming out to catch rats at SS15/4D in Subang Jaya, also known as “Bubble Tea Street” to locals because of the array of boba shops to be found here. The result is the extermination of 161 rats at just 2 row of shoplots.

Warning: Some of the images of dead animals below may make some viewers uncomfortable.

Over a hundred rats caught within a 2-minute walk

On 3rd April 2021, Ken Chai, Subang Jaya municipal councillor, took to his Facebook page to share the story and photos of the exterminated rats. In the caption, he shared that the collaborative efforts between the MBSJ members and residents saw 161 rats caught in the back lanes of a section of SS15, between Public Bank to Maybank on Jalan SS15/4D.

161 rats caught and exterminated in SS15 - pests
Image credit: Ken Chia

According to Google Maps, the walk from Public Bank to Maybank takes just 2 minutes, or about a 160m distance. This back lane is also just a stone’s throw from popular eateries and bubble tea shops in the area.

161 rats caught and exterminated in SS15 - distance
Image credit: Google Maps

Rats are common pests, and there are ongoing efforts to get rid of them

This is not the first attempt of MBSJ to rid the streets of Subang Jaya, and other parts of Selangor, of rats.

A report from The Star, dated September 2014, saw previous efforts by MBSJ to exterminate rats from populous areas in cities and towns such as SS14 in Subang Jaya, as well as Bandar Puchong Utama in Puchong.

During these “rat extermination” programmes, the council health department set out rat poison baits overnight and returned the next morning to collect and clean up rat carcasses from the streets – similar to the operation in the post shared by Chia on 3rd April.

161 rats caught and exterminated in SS15 - KL
Image (for illustration purposes only) credit: Unsplash / @marcusloke

This pesky rat issue, however, isn’t limited to just in Subang or Selangor. Astro Awani reported back in August 2013 that there were 6.8 million rats in KL – or 1 citizen to every four rats in the city.

In 2014, DBKL Pest Control Unit reported that they caught a total of 54,370 rodents in that year. Fast forward to 2019, and DBKL began offering RM3 per rat that was caught and reported by locals to authorities, to help stomp out the overpopulating rodent issue in the Jinjang area that was allegedly ongoing due to clogged drains, as reported by The Star.

Similarly, MBSJ offered 50sen for every rat caught in 2009, also reported by The Star. While the operations helped decrease the rat population there, there have been health worries stemming from the operations, because citizens were being exposed to carcasses that could potentially transmit air-borne diseases.

161 rats found and exterminated by MBSJ at SS15 Subang Jaya

Rats gather in groups where food is easily accessible. That’s why we’re always reminded to dispose of our garbage properly – especially so if it involves unfinished food – so we don’t contribute to an issue faced by cities and towns over the years. Keeping our drains clean is another step that we can take to ensure that we aren’t at risk of harbouring rats in the back lanes of our homes, as well as popular streets in Malaysia.