'WE NEED THE PIED PIPER'

A rat is being blamed by an 87-year-old Brigg woman for the death of her beloved pet cat Spike Milligan.
Kath Smith (nee Sambrook) has been complaining to the authorities about the number of rats in the Glebe Road area of town and urging them to take action.
Some efforts are being made to tackle the problem, but it's all come too late for Spike, who was in Kath's front garden one evening when he was bitten by a rat.
"I called a vet in. She gave him an injection and I thought he was a bit better, but he cried out in pain and then he died," she recalled.
Kath says Coun John Berry - he's one of the Brigg area's three representatives on North Lincolnshire Council - has offered help over the 'number of tatty rats invading our gardens'.
A 'rat-catcher man' has been sent to her home and has given her a phone number to ring if she spots any more foraging for food in the area. Kath, in turn, has given the helpline number to some of her neighbours.
"We need the Pied Piper of Hamelin," Kath suggests.