A day after WGN-Ch. 9 aired an investigative report about rodent infestation at O’Hare International Airport, city officials said the animals do not pose a public health risk to the hundreds of thousands of travelers who pass through the airport every day.
Karen Pride, a spokeswoman for the Chicago Department of Aviation, said that if there is a problem, “we want to eradicate the problem. There is no infestation.”
Aviation Department personnel monitor terminal operations 24 hours a day, Pride said.
The food at O’Hare is safe, said Tim Hadac, a spokesman for the city’s Department of Public Health, which regulates and inspects all establishments serving food at the airport.
“We’re aware of what WGN has found on video,” Hadac said. “Is that in any way compromising the safety of the food at O’Hare? The answer appears to be ‘no.'”
No restaurants at the airport have been shut down as a result of WGN’s report, he said. Since January 2007, seven restaurants at O’Hare have been closed for various infractions of public health laws, including one related to rodent infestation, Hadac said.
“Clearly, there is some rodent activity in the facility,” Hadac said.
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But the department’s inspections indicate there are no rodents in the airport’s food, he said.
When asked Tuesday by a WGN reporter about rodents at the airport, Mayor Richard Daley said the Department of Streets and Sanitation will go to the airport to talk with vendors or anyone in regard to food processing.
“No, this is unacceptable, you know that. It’s unacceptable in a home or any public building. But I’m glad they did it. So thank you, WGN,” Daley said with laughter.
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