RODENTS INFEST DOWNTOWN

RODENTS INFEST DOWNTOWN was the headline of a copy of the River's Edge Dispatch that read as follows:

River's Edge Dispatch April 5, 2007

Rodents and small pests have been gathering near and in down town River’s Edge. Many local business owners are concerned about the smell and the sanitation issues caused by the influx of these pests.

Bill Gaines, owner of The Logger's Brewery says, “The smell of the mills can be bad enough some days, but now, these rats are making it worse. It’s definitely deterring customers.”

Cindy Mathers is also worried about the sudden increase in rodents and pests. “I don’t know what’s going on,” Cindy states, “but I can tell you people are not happy and are definitely worried about the long term effects that these rats and pests will cause.”

Steven Dinn, a local Animal Control official, states that he and a crew consisting of 13 other workers have been on the job for two days now. Steven, in a press conference conducted earlier this week, stated, “Some of these animals are very emaciated. I’ve seen this before and I can tell you this problem won’t last till the end of the week. However, the primary concern and focus should be a possible increase in rabies transmission.” The county and state processing labs have been performing autopsies and tests on the captured rodents and have yet to comment on the results.

Reports of animal attacks have risen in the past few days due to the congregating animals. Hospital emergency rooms are filling up with bite victims. “Rabies is our main concern,” Dr. Phillip Waxman tells us. “We definitely have a possible medical problem and we have no way to tell when it will come to a close.”

Residents in the industrial district of River’s Edge are being asked to stay indoors for the time being and commuters and tourists are being asked to limit travel and outside activities to morning and afternoon hours. Dr. Waxman states that “most of our current cases happened during the early morning hours, ranging anywhere from midnight to four in the morning.” Dr. Waxman also advises locals to make sure that they remain in well lit areas to help deter contact with these animals.

Behind the Scenes

 * The rodents eventually went on to pass on a disease that turned humans into flesh-eating bees.

Appearances

 * Dead Meat, (Prologue: River's Edge Dispatch April 5th, 2007)