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Approximately 58,000 people call Huntington Park home. The city is a destination point in Los Angeles. In other words, people venture to the city for shopping, dining, and entertainment. A prime point within Huntington Park is Pacific Boulevard and its historic Art Deco buildings. These include some beautiful historic theaters in the district.
Residents call Huntington Park home for a number of reasons. The community has a lower crime rate than much of the city. In addition to Pacific Boulevard and all that district has to offer, the community has solid schools and a variety of recreational opportunities.
Occasionally issues have arisen in regard to health and building code violations in the city. The city government has consistently attempted to maintain compliance with health and building codes.
Prosecution for Huntington Park Health and Building Code Violations
An example of a situation in which a Huntington Park resident faced prosecution is found in the case of Gary Garth Robinson. Robinson was a Huntington Park landlord and owned eight bungalows in a cluster near one another.
Robinson was put in trial in Huntington Beach for eight violations of the health code in regard to these bungalows. Evidence was presented at a trial that the bungalows were infested with rats and rat droppings as well as roaches. The bungalows had rotting floors, leaky plumbing, and slime-covered walls. The buildings, as a group, were further contaminated by a 30-foot wide pool of raw sewage.
Robinson was found guilty of all charged. He was sentenced to 15 days in the county jail for what the deputy district attorney prosecuting the case called operating slum housing. Robinson was also put on probation for three years at the end of his short jail term. He had to pay a $1,700 fine.
Not only do cases involving health and safety violations impact Huntington Park rental properties, but they can also occur in restaurants and at other businesses in the city. For example, one of the more common, major health code violations issued by the City of Huntington Park to eateries involves rat infestation and rat droppings.
The Dangers of Rat Droppings
Of course, there existed a myriad of problems with the Robinson Huntington Park properties. One of the more dangerous situations involved the presence of rats and rat droppings in and at these residential properties.
Rat droppings can contain a number of different types of dangerous viruses and bacteria. Many individuals incorrectly presume that rat droppings become safe as they dry out. These individuals believe that in order for bacteria and viruses to remain alive, rat droppings must be of fresh origin. In fact, with certain types of pathogens that can be contained in rat droppings, this is not the case.
Rat droppings have the potential for becoming even more dangerous when they dry out. Take rat droppings containing hantavirus as an example.
The hantavirus is a serious pathogen. It can result in a potentially fatal condition known as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. In basic terms, this disease causes a person’s lungs to fill with blood, a process that does result in death in a considerable number of cases.
The hantavirus doesn’t die when rat droppings dry out. Dry rat droppings are fragile. They can crumble with even a minimal amount of contact. For example, if a person attempts to sweep up rat droppings, they crumble and release dust into the air. Absent proper protective gear, that dust – and the associated virus or bacteria – is breathed in. Once breathed in, the pathogen contained in the dust, like hantavirus, can infect a person and result in serious disease.
Seeking Assistance for Code Violation: Addressing Rat Infestation and Rat Droppings
If you come upon a situation in Huntington Park that suggests the presence of rat infestation, including the presence of rat droppings, you have the ability to file a report. These types of investigations are handled by the Huntington Park Police Department. You can submit a report using this link. In addition, you may also make a report by calling the City of Huntington Park Code Enforcement Hotline at (323) 826-6693.
The Huntington Park Police Department is located at:
6542 Miles Avenue
Huntington Park, California 90255
Professional Assistance for Rat Droppings Cleanup
The safest and most effective way to undertake rat droppings cleanup is to hire the services of an experienced Huntington Beach biohazard cleanup specialist. A firm trained in biohazard cleanup, including rat droppings cleanup, has the skill, experience, and equipment necessary to ensure that a residence is returned to a safe, livable condition (or that a business is returned to a safe, usable condition).
