A SNOOKER club boss has complained after it took council environmental health officers more than a week to respond to reports of rats near his premises.

Peter Everett says he saw rats at the back of Darlington Snooker Club, in Corporation Road, on Saturday, August 4.

But it was only yesterday - nine days later - that his reports were investigated.

A few days of regular rain is thought to have raised the water levels in the sewers and forced the rats into the alleyway.

Mr Everett contacted Darlington Borough Council's environmental health department on the morning of Monday, August 6, and was told it would be three days before anyone could come out.

Thursday came and went, and when he called again just before 4pm last Friday, he said he was told everyone had finished work for the weekend and it would be Monday before the report could be investigated.

A council spokesman said last night that the delay had been caused by a mixture of volume of work and staff holidays. Officers were sent out yesterday to investigate, he said.

But Mr Everett said he felt the number of fast food outlets in the Northgate and North Road area, close to his business, should have meant the case was made a priority.

He said: "You would think if you've got rats and things they would be out straight away, because there are plenty of food places round where I am.

"There are food houses around the corner. We get pizza boxes in the back lane at night. They are just coming from that."

The council spokesman said: "They were seen after heavy rain which we suspect has flooded the drainage channel and the rats have been in there and come out because of the water.

"Our environmental health officers are out there today to assess whether or not there is a problem. We doubt if there is an infestation. We do get sightings of rats after heavy rain."

He added: "We get there as soon as we can."