Mayor Adams invites volunteers to join ‘Rat Pack’ program to fight rodents on their home turf

Mayor Eric Adams announced this week the launch of a new volunteer program to help keep his nemesis–the New York City rat population–at bay. New Yorkers can sign up to join the “Rat Pack,” a volunteer team that will step up for rat mitigation duty across the city. The new opportunity draws on the strength of the city’s Department of Health-sponsored “Rat Academy.” After a few training sessions, participants will be “deputized” to take the fight back to their neighborhood streets and sidewalks.

Volunteers will attend a Rat Academy session, join a “rat walk,” and participate in a rat mitigation service event to become official members of the NYC Rat Pack (complete with official t-shirts and hats).

Though anyone can sign up, the program is intended to give building superintendents, property managers, community gardeners, and business owners more firepower to control the furry pests at the street level. The program is helmed by the mayor’s “Rat Czar,” Kathleen Corradi.

“We’re really proud of the city’s efforts of going after public enemy number one, and those are those pesky rodents that we have seen far too often,” Adams said. “Now we’re doing something new. We’re recruiting an entirely new generation of the Rat Pack…It’s just a different type of leader to fight the rats, and we want you to join up and become a member of our Rat Pack.”

He added, “You don’t need to sing.”

For more information on the Rat Pack, you can email [email protected].

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