FURIOUS residents are demanding swift action is taken to tackle a fly infestation that has engulfed their communities.
Swarms of insects in areas of Parr and Sutton has led to neighbours bombarding the Environment Agency with complaints this week.
Officers are investigating whether the source of the infestation is waste at the Viridor recycling plant at Lancots Lane, Sutton.
Mother-of-two Julie Procter, 46, of Carnegie Crescent, Sutton, said: “We are being driven mad in our homes and gardens by swarms of flies.
“We can’t open doors or windows in this hot spell. It’s horrible - like an invasion.
“I had plates out for the Sunday dinner at the weekend and before I could do anything there were flies over the chicken.
“We must have killed about 20 the other day. One of my sons had to sleep in a different bedroom because some had got in the house.”
A resident of Ellen Avenue, added: “I was going to go in the back yard tomorrow and move the shed because I thought something had crawled under it and died.
“Apart from this week, we’ve not had particularly hot weather - God help us in June or July. We have gone through four cans of fly spray already.
“One neighbour rang Viridor and was told there was no evidence it was their responsibility.
“So he collected 40 dead flies in a jar, went round, plonked it on a desk and said there’s your evidence.”
Since Tuesday more than 170 complaints have been received by the Environment Agency, which has told Viridor to remove the waste by tomorrow (Friday).
Peter Johnson from the Environment Agency said: “We have received complaints from residents in Sutton about the number of flies in the area.
“We suspect that the flies are the result of a change in the type of waste being processed by Viridor Recycling Limited.
“We have instructed Viridor to remove all affected waste from the site by Friday, May 25. We have also instructed them to stop accepting new waste onto the site until the current waste is moved, and to engage pest control contractors which they have done.
“We are investigating enforcement options regarding this incident and are sending a leaflet to residents to keep them informed of our activity.
“We understand that this is nuisance for local people and are monitoring the situation closely with the aim of resolving the problem quickly. We are visiting the site frequently to check on progress.”
Dozens of complaints have been sent to the Star’s newsroom via phone, email and social media.
In a statement Viridor said: “Viridor is aware of fly complaints in the Sutton area of St Helens in the vicinity of the Lancots Lane facility.
“Viridor takes such complaints very seriously and is investigating the allegations. We will be making no further comment on this matter until our internal investigations are complete.”
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