NEW ORLEANS — Neighbors who live in the St. Bernard Area are fending off rats and snakes after a property on their street was left abandoned years ago and the city hasn't taken action to fix it.
The property is located at 3715 Cadillac Street. The people who live next door contacted WWL-TV worried for their safety.
"I stopped sitting out, I can't see what's going on in there," said Katrina Foley. "That's too much."
Foley inherited her Cadillac Street home from her father several years ago, but the space around her is now closing in with weeds and wildlife moving in.
"It's infested with everything," Foley said. "Rats, snakes, possums just like everything. The rats have entered my home, and when they did I left."
On the other side of the property, Eddie Conrad is also dealing with pests.
"Every morning there are possums chasing my cats away," Conrad said. "You come out here when it’s cool, you see snakes out trying to sun and cool off. What we’re worried about is kids in the neighborhood getting bitten by a poisonous snake."
According to the New Orleans Blight Status website, the city has cited 3715 Cadillac Street with 43 violations just in the last six years. The city issued two violations six months ago for "rodent harborage." The most recent violations have not yet made it to court.
Now neighbors are left uncertain about how long the city will make them put up with what has moved in next door.
City officials tell WWL-TV they plan to remove the overgrowth on property early next week.
If a house near you is blighted or overgrown, you can report it to New Orleans' 311by clicking here.