The kitchen at Denver’s East High School is clear of rats and mice, and the school is working on eradicating rodents in other areas of the old building.
In a letter Monday to Denver East parents, principal Andy Mendelsberg noted that “inspectors determined that the kitchen area has been successfully cleaned and no longer has a rodent infestation.”
The district is continuing eradication efforts in the rest of the school. The remaining problems are in parts of the building, built in 1924, that are not accessible to students, officials said.
Neither the district nor health department released an estimate on how many rodents may have nested in the school.
Issues arose Thursday when an inspector with the Denver Department of Environmental Health inspected the school during a routine call and “found substantial quantities of mouse and rat droppings,” said Danica Lee, food safety and section manager with the department.
The inspector shut down the kitchen immediately Thursday.
Rodent droppings were found in food boxes, on kitchen equipment, on counter tops and the floor.
The kitchen was closed Thursday and Friday, and food for students was brought in from outside.
There have been no reports of bites or illness at the school associated with the rodents, said Doug Schepman, a school district spokesman. Staffers and students are urged to wash their hands often and not leave open or exposed food in classrooms and lockers.
Even food items thrown in the trash should be contained or wrapped to combat the rodents, school officials said.
