A family in Georgia has been forced from their home after it was invaded by nearly 80 bats.
Isaiah and Monica Grant have refused to enter their home in Ardsley Park, about a three-hour drive from Atlanta, after the Georgia Department of Public Health said Jan. 29 that the home posed an “immanent health risk.”
“This was so traumatizing,” Monica said WSAV about the rental home she shares with her husband, toddler and baby.
The couple reported witnessing their first bat in the house on January 18 and within a few days they noticed more bats swarming inside.
‘Three bats fly down the stairs while we are sitting in the living room. They’re starting to come through the vents. The kids were already asleep,” Monica said.
“It seemed like we were done, we gotta get out of here, something’s wrong.”
Bats are seen from a piece of furniture in the family’s rental house. The couple reported witnessing the first bat in their home on January 18
Isaiah and Monica Grant have refused to enter their home in Ardsley Park, Georgia, after finding a swarm of bats inside. The Georgia Department of Public Health said the home posed an “immanent health risk.”
Since the family, who originally lived in Chicago, fled their new home, they have moved in with a neighbor.
The owner of the rental property, Cathleen Barela of Property Management Company, told News 3 that the company has spoken with the family and has been in contact with Savannah Code Compliance.
“Code Compliance created a violation because of the pressure they received from the tenants,” Barela said.
She added that the bats had to be ‘removed from the property’ and that they were aware that steps were being taken to arrange that.
“We acted as any property manager would do and had it addressed based on when they reported it,” Barela added.
Although the property owner said everything is under control, the Grant family says they are still dealing with inconveniences. All four were ordered to immediately get a rabies vaccination, which they will have to pay for themselves.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention“Bats are the leading cause of rabies death among humans in the United States.”
A group of bats are seen hanging from an air vent in the family’s home. They moved to Georgia from Chicago a year ago with their toddler and baby
The family has since sent out a GoFundMe page to raise money so they can buy a new home and pay medical bills, as they had to be tested for rabies again and again due to the infection.
‘There is no treatment for rabies. Either you get the vaccine or you die,” said the worried mother.
Isaiah, the father, said there is “no manageable way to know if you have been bitten.”
The family has begun the process of starting one GoFundMe page to raise money for a new home and mounting medical bills. The donation page raised more than $11,700 as of Wednesday.
‘We have renters insurance, but they have stated that “a bat infestation is not a covered loss” and that even though the house has been declared uninhabitable, it should be for a reason that is a covered loss. Isaiah said on the page.
“Dracula is real,” he added.
A bat is seen hanging from a wicker basket in the house. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported that there are 16 different species of bats in the state of Georgia
There is still a bat hanging from a translucent white curtain in the house. The family has since moved into a townhome until they figure out their next steps
In a Feb. 2 update, the father and husband said he and his family have been “overwhelmed by the support” they have received, and were contacted by someone with a furnished townhouse to use.
“We’ll be moving into a townhouse in the next month while we figure out what to do next,” Isaiah said.
The U.S. Fish and Game Service reported that there are 16 different species of bats in the state of Georgia.
Although most bats do not have rabies, it is not possible to tell by looking at them whether they do or not. The viral illness must be tested and confirmed in a laboratory, the CDC said.