Mount Hebron High School students received unwelcome visitors Wednesday when they sat down to eat in the cafeteria — six rats fell from the ceiling onto their table.

The 42-year-old Ellicott City school has struggled with infestation and sewage problems since last year when wastewater leaked from the ceiling in several rooms, sprinkling teachers and students during exams, teachers said.

Principal David Brown told The Examiner on the first day of classes that the rodent, sewage and other safety issues were resolved despite a report suggesting there were still serious structural, lead and asbestos problems. School and county officials concealed a county report from parents for nearly 13 months.

“They lie,” said one of several teachers who spoke to The Examiner under the condition of anonymity. “They lie about everything. If this was a restaurant, they would shut it down.”

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“The rats have been an ongoing problem,” another teacher said. “They went on public record and said it was solved, but it’s not solved. There’s a trust factor now with the [county’s] central office. It’s gotten to the point that when kids see a rat, it’s not that big of a deal. It’s laughable. I feel sorry for the Mount Hebron administration.”

Mark Hardin, a pest-management specialist, called it “an isolated incident,” and said it was only “one rat” and a “few babies.”

“The rats are all over the building and they are not confined to one area,” another teacher said. “We’re not talking about little rats, we’re talking about big rats. Rats have diseases and we don’t want anybody to get hurt.”

State public health veterinarian Katherine Feldman said “rat feces, rat urine, rat saliva — these can all transmit diseases to humans. They also have been known to bite people.”

On Thursday, the food-protection manager and the community hygiene manager at the Bureau of Environmental Health at the Howard County Health Department inspected the outside of the school after receiving complaints from parents who read about the story in The Examiner, Bureau Director Burt Nixon said. School officials did not allow them to go inside, because the school was closed for the observance of Rosh Hashanah, a Jewish holiday. They found areas where rats may have entered the school.

Asked if the cafeteria should shut down, Nixon said investigators would have to find critical violations such as cross-contamination of food handling or storage. Health inspectors plan to return to the school again, but Nixon did not provide a specific date.

“The staff has legitimate issues which are outlined in the staff letters and has concerns how the renovation project will be implemented,” said Scott Robinson, the school’s media specialist. “We’re hoping the process will get these issues resolved. The health department has to make the determination if the cafeteria should be closed.”

The infestation problems combined with safety problems prompted more than 100 teachers and staff to sign a petition demanding the school board take immediate action. Teachers almost ran into a roadblock when school officials decided to hold back-to-school night on the same night of the board meeting. When the teachers told the principal they would not attend the volunteer back-to-school night, the parent night was changed.

By the numbers

A study of 201 rats found:

» 65 percent carried leptospirosis which causes bleeding in the lungs

» 34 percent had bartonella, infects lymph glands

» 73 percent had hepatitis-E related virus, a rare liver disease

Source: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Staff Writers Karl Hille and Josh Kowalkowski contributed to this report.

tmaier@baltimoreexaminer.com

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