Lockdowns are currently being lifted all over the country amidst the coronavirus pandemic, and while this comes as good news to millions of Americans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has just issued a terrifying warning that has people stopping dead in their tracks.

The New York Post reported that as lockdowns lift, the CDC is warning that rats and other rodents have become more aggressive while scavenging for food. As society begins to reopen, the CDC says the rodents could be ready to unleash a wave of “aggressive rodent behavior” on an unsuspecting public.

“Community-wide closures have led to a decrease in food available to rodents, especially in dense commercial areas,” the CDC said. “Some jurisdictions have reported an increase in rodent activity as rodents search for new sources of food. Environmental health and rodent control programs may see an increase in service requests related to rodents and reports of unusual or aggressive rodent behavior.”

The CDC went on to urge residents and restaurant owners to seal up holes that rats can use to get inside, and also to clear up debris and garbage.

“Follow established guidelines when cleaning up after rodent infestations to prevent exposure to rodent-borne diseases,” the advisory stated. “Fleas are common on rodents. In area of heavy rodent infestations, workers should consider using a repellent registered by the US Environmental Protection Agency…”

This comes after rats in cities across America struggled to find food in lockdowns, and in some cases even resorted to rodent cannibalism.

“A restaurant all of a sudden closes now, which has happened by the thousands in not just New York City but coast to coast and around the world,” Bobby Corrigan, an urban rodentologist, told NBC News last month. “And those rats that were living by that restaurant [or] some place nearby, and perhaps for decades having generations of rats that depended on that restaurant food, well, life is no longer working for them, and they only have a couple of choices.”

“They’re mammals just like you and I, and so when you’re really, really hungry, you’re not going to act the same — you’re going to act very bad, usually,” he added. “So these rats are fighting with one another, now the adults are killing the young in the nest and cannibalizing the pups.”

This piece originally appeared in UpliftingToday.com and is used by permission.

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