Singleton’s bat problem at ‘crisis’ point as council try to fix major health and safety issue

A town has been driven so batty over a plague of flying foxes that council have been summoned to sink their fangs into the problem.

A rural town in the Hunter Valley has been driven so batty over a plague of flying foxes that council have been summoned to sink their fangs into the problem after health and safety concerns were aired.

For years thousands of bats have made Singleton their home, favouring the tree-lined Burdekin Park.

But in the last month, the situation has reached fever pitch, with the winged nocturnal creatures making themselves comfortable all over town. Schools, daycare centres, businesses and houses – they are quite literally hanging out everywhere.

Residents now say they are “ready for war” and want to see council do something about it.

“Every day there are more and more branches falling and I’m concerned somebody is going to get injured,” resident Tim Gore said.

“The bats can’t stay in my backyard, it’s affecting my family’s quality of life and their safety.

Singleton resident Tim Gore has had enough of the bats, with a colony of flying foxes now affecting residences and businesses in the area. Supplied.

Singleton Little Kindy Director Stephanie Hallett says the bat problem is a health and safety issue for children and families. Supplied.

Known as “Batman” around town, Mr Gore has gone as far to arm himself with an air horn to scare away the bats.

“It certainly is driving me batty,” he joked.

“The smell, the waste, there’s bat droppings falling everywhere.

“The constant screeching is worse before they leave between 7:30am and 8am. Then they come back at about 1am and it’s disrupting everyone’s sleep. It’s a constant headache.”

Some families are also being forced to keep their children out of daycare, with the Little Kindy childcare centre in Singleton facing possible contamination concerns.

“Confirmed yesterday that bat faeces was on our roof. When it rains it goes into the water system and tanks, contaminates our toilets and vegetable garden spray that we use,” centre director Stephanie Hallett said.

“Now it has become a massive health and safety issue. We don’t want any children to contract anything.

“A couple (of families) have put their child’s enrolment on hold until we get to the bottom of it because they are from farming families.

“If the kids contract anything, they could go back home to give it to the livestock and affect livelihoods.”

The mess left behind by bats at the residence of Singleton local Tim Gore. Supplied.

“They value our service but are not returning until the bats are gone.”

The horrific everyday reality of the bats are creating a dire atmosphere at the centre.

“The bats are defecating in the children’s yard and we have had to shut down environments and had to put risk minimisations assessments in place to ensure there is no risk to children,” Ms Hallett added.

“It means they can’t eat outside or play at certain times and it’s also a risk to families when they enter the service due to falling trees.

Part of Mr Gore’s residence has been cordoned off due to risk of falling trees. Supplied.

The plague has prompted angry calls for Singleton Council to take responsibility for the situation immediately.

Suggested solutions to trim back trees and move the bats on have seemingly fallen on deaf ears.

“Trim the trees, minimise risk, surely they could do that so bats aren’t overhanging in our yard and it will help to minimise it,” Ms Hallett said.

“Council wants to protect these bats but are they going to protect the children?”

The big bat problem in Singleton. Picture: Facebook

Singleton Councillor Hollie Jenkins admits they have been trying to cohabitate with the bats for years but in reality, it’s not working.

“We’re a council for the town, not for the bats,” she said.

Cr Jenkins put up a notice of motion for state and federal politicians to take urgent action to address the crisis in the township amid the concerns over health and safety.

“Surely over the last 15 years that we’ve had this problem there could have been some research done in the interim,” she said.

“I’m not after eradication by any means, I’m after moving them on to a more suitable place so we can now go back to our normal existence.

“(We) have a Burdekin Bat management plan for the flying fox colony, and if there was new information from the Office of Environment and Heritage, we could then update that plan and implement some recommendations.”

The bats will be discussed at a council meeting on Tuesday night.