A White Rock man says he no longer feels safe after a gaze of raccoons punched a hole in his ceiling and ransacked his house.
Ken Rechik, who lives on Sunset Drive, was vacationing in Costa Rica when he received a call from his neighbour last week that someone 含羞草研究社� or something 含羞草研究社� had broken into his house.
He cut his trip short and came home as quickly as he could, Rechik told Peace Arch News on Monday.
含羞草研究社淲e went into the house and there was a gaping hole in the garage and tracks all over, it was raccoons,含羞草研究社� Rechik said.
Rechik took a PAN reporter for a tour of his home Monday. There was a hole, about a foot in diameter, in the 10-foot ceiling of his garage. The raccoons, Rechik said, ripped away protective wiring and dug a hole through his wooden-shingle roof to get access to the garage attic.
There was evidence to suggest that the raccoons spent significant time in the garage: the garage door was engraved with scratch marks and items were overturned and scattered about. The garage still had the musky smell of animal.
From the garage, the raccoons apparently climbed up a wall to enter the house through an open bathroom window.
SEE ALSO:
Inside, they ate mounds of sugar, smashed Rechik含羞草研究社檚 mother含羞草研究社檚 crystal, overturned tables, went through drawers, dug up and overturned nearly every plant in the house, chewed wires, ate a speaker, and defecated and soaked the carpet with urine.
It seems the only thing the raccoons didn含羞草研究社檛 do, oddly enough, was go through the pantry.
It含羞草研究社檚 not the first time Rechik has had trouble with the animals, but it含羞草研究社檚 the first time they were inside his house.
含羞草研究社淚 phoned a roofer, now I含羞草研究社檓 going to put wire right through across (the roof). Put barbed wire, make it look like a (Third-World) house, I don含羞草研究社檛 give a含羞草研究社�. Do you want to come home to this?含羞草研究社�
Rechik says he feels helpless in his battle against the raccoons. It含羞草研究社檚 not a policing issue, and the City of White Rock has been little help, he said. However, former councillor Bill Lawrence brought him a raccoon trap a couple years back.
含羞草研究社淚 would have rather it be a burglar because at least the cops will do something. The cops don含羞草研究社檛 do anything, the city doesn含羞草研究社檛 do anything and it含羞草研究社檚 not the first time,含羞草研究社� Rechik said.
SEE ALSO:
He said the raccoon problem has gotten worse over the last three years, and one recently killed a neighbourhood cat.
含羞草研究社淲hat do I have to protect me? Nothing. What am I going to do? Throw a spoon at them? These are aggressive, they含羞草研究社檙e getting more and more aggressive.含羞草研究社�
Rechik, noting that he含羞草研究社檚 lived at the property for 25 years and has paid more than $100,000 in property taxes, says the city should be doing more work on raccoon management.
City officials were not immediately able to comment.
