Featured Image Credit: Newsflash
A giant fake rat – together with tonnes of other rubbish – was discovered to have caused a flood which drowned a 54-year-old woman trapped inside her flat.
The giant prop of a rat was caught on camera after being pulled from the water in the Magdalena Contreras borough of the Mexican capital city of Mexico City on Friday 18 September.
It was found among 20 tonnes (44,092 lbs) of rubbish that was blocking a drainage system that caused flooding in the city after experiencing uncommonly strong rainfall in the season.
The woman that died was named in local media reports as ‘Dona Mari’ (Miss Mari). She was 54 and drowned in her flat after the water flooded into her residence.
The water caused furniture to move and block the door trapping her inside and drowning her. Her body was discovered by a neighbour, who went looking for her after realising she wasn’t with other residents who had congregated outside after leaving their homes due to the flooding.
Authorities cleaned the drainage system in the area in hopes of reducing the flooding, and that is when they found the giant fake rat. Locals were baffled and it is unclear where it came from.
Mayor Patricia Ortiz Coutier issued a statement saying: “It has been five arduous days of teamwork to help the families that were affected.
“On the days spent cleaning the river and ravine we found tonnes of garbage, we cannot allow for this accumulation of waste which places many families at risk.”
It is thought the tonnes of rubbish ended up in the drainage system after the trash was dumped in the river rather then being disposed of properly by those in charge of dealing with it.
One thing’s for sure, the peculiar discovery gave everyone involved a fright. Some of the workers workers even said that if they had seen the creature on the street, they would have run for the hills.
Local reports say passers-by ‘marvelled’ at the ‘rat’ after it was pulled out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OublBFF6ZBc