CHIANG MAI– City Hall has moved fast after a viral clip showed large rats tearing into food scraps from bin bags left on the sidewalk around the old city moat. Officials have stepped up cleaning and disinfection.
The Chiang Mai city administration has also added more rubbish bins and asked local businesses to handle waste properly. Rodent control rounds will also take place more often. A quick fix using poison saws, rats run onto the road and get hit by cars, leaving many dead on the tarmac.
The clip, posted by a well-known Chiang Mai Facebook page, showed a swarm of big rats feeding from black bin bags piled late at night on Moon Muang Road, inside the moat near Tha Phae Gate.
The bags had been left for early morning collection by city staff. After the video spread, comments poured in calling for swift action to protect public hygiene and keep the city’s image strong. Chiang Mai was recently voted number 1 in Asia and number 2 worldwide in Travel + Leisure’s Best Cities list for 2025.
Today, Chiang Mai City Hall teams went on-site to inspect and respond. Dararat Phongrattanaman, director of the Public Health and Environment Office, said staff spent the weekend urging better waste management, which sits at the heart of the issue. More bins were placed near shops, restaurants, and accommodation to handle extra rubbish.
She noted that too many bins could spoil the city’s look and attract waste from outside areas, which creates new problems. Businesses were asked to put rubbish in bins, or use their own lidded bins and set them out at night, then take them back after morning collection.
As for rats and cockroaches, the municipality already runs control programmes on three and six-month cycles. Shops, eateries, and local premises have been given rat poison to tackle heavy infestations. The city will now tighten measures, with a focus on roads around the moat.
Crews will survey drains, cracks, gaps, and burrows that house rodents and insects, then seal them properly. They will also increase the frequency of baiting. Residents can report trouble spots to the city, both for pest control and for placing extra bins, to help keep streets clean and protect Chiang Mai’s reputation.
A site visit to the area shown in the clip found many dead rats on the road, crushed by passing vehicles, after poison was laid over the weekend. Nearby, Chiang Mai City Hall had set out more public bins. Many businesses had also installed their own lockable, lidded containers to keep rubbish secure overnight.
