Health expert condemns park rats

By ANTONIO ANTENUCCI and CARL CAMPANILE
Last Updated: 8:50 AM, October 22, 2011

Close this pigpen!

Filth-ridden Zuccotti Park is a breeding ground for bacterial infection loaded with potential health-code violations that pose a major risk to the public, an expert who inspected the area warned.

“It’s like Walmart for rats,’’ Wayne Yon, an expert on city health regulations, said yesterday.

“There’s a lack of sanitation, a lack of controls for hot and cold water,” Yon said. He saw at least 15 violations of the city’s health code -- the type that would easily shut down a food establishment.

He noted the lack of lavatory facilities, as neighbors repeatedly complain about protesters defecating in the area and the stench of urine.

Yon also pointed to unsanitary conditions in wash bins for cleaning food utensils.

“It looks extraordinarily dirty, and [the bin] should be changed once it starts to get dirty,” said Yon, who works for EHA Consulting Group Inc. Then he pointed to a pigeon in a tree right above where the protesters were washing dishes.

“There’s no overhead coverings. Pigeons are basically vermin,” Yon said.

He said there’s inadequate hand washing, the No. 1 culprit for food-borne illnesses in restaurants