The Associated Press
Friday, March 21, 2008; 5:09 AM

BANGKOK, Thailand -- Health officials in Thailand have launched a
national campaign against rats _ starting with their own offices.

In the past two days, nearly 50 rats were caught inside the Health
Ministry compound in Bangkok, prompting Friday's announcement of a
national anti-rodent campaign.

The infestation of the ministry responsible for promoting health and
hygiene shows just how pervasive Thailand's rat problem has become,
Health Minister Chaiya Sasomsup said in a statement.

"Rats are commonly found wherever there is food, debris and garbage _
not just at the Health Ministry," Chaiya said.

The ministry has instructed more than 10,000 health offices, including
hospitals and public clinics, to follow its lead and start eradicating
rats by setting out traps and practicing better hygiene.

"The animals have become a nuisance. They bite wires, cables, documents
and destroy office equipment," said Thawat Suntrajarn, of the health
ministry's Disease Control Department. "Worst of all, they are carriers
of infectious diseases."

The ministry hopes to reduce the number of rats before Thailand's rainy
season, which typically starts in May, when standing water can become
contaminated with the bacterial diseases rats can carry.

At the Health Ministry itself, civil servants have been instructed to
stop throwing garbage into the nearby sewers and to keep any leftover
food in closed containers, said ministry official Pairat Varachit.

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