'The gates of hell': Photo reveals city spot hiding thousands of cockroaches
As Australians swelter through summer, spotting a few cockroaches is becoming more common but a photo of what lurks beneath the grounds of South Australia has been described as a “nightmare” and has left people squirming.
The image posted on Facebook by SA Water shows thousands of cockroaches swarming the inside of a sewer pipe in metropolitan Adelaide.
Although SA Water admitted in their post that spotting the odd cockroach is “not uncommon”, people on social media have been reacting to the photo and it has sent a shiver down the spine of cockroach-fearing Facebook users.
“That’s no sewer, that’s the gates of hell,” one person accurately responded.
A few people were left wondering how anyone could work up the courage to climb into the roach infested hole.
“I'd go down there, in a space suit only!” someone commented.
An SA Water spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia that thankfully, no crew had to venture down the roach-filled manhole as they use “use special equipment, which can be lowered into the sewer network to inspect or clear any blockages.”
Sewers aren’t the only place cockroaches love hiding out though, it seems the critters will make themselves at home anywhere dark, damp and warm.
Most people seemed to get a kick out of tagging their friends in SA Water’s post.
“That. Was. Unnecessary.” one unimpressed person responded when tagged.
“I would die if I had seen this,” a user said.
Cockroaches have become a huge problem as they love to breed in humid conditions like an Aussie summer.
Warren Bailey from ABC Pest Control told Yahoo News that Aussies should get prepared for a colossal cockroach infested summer.
“I’m predicting onwards from January it will be really hectic with the German cockroaches. When the fires clear up, I reckon it’s going to ballistic,” he said.
The unusual items found in sewers
SA Water told Yahoo News that images like the Adelaide sewer were not just for shock value.
“Sharing gross and weird content like this is a great way of capturing people’s attention and raising awareness of our #healthysewers message”.
SA Water said they spend “about $400,000 a year in the Adelaide metropolitan area removing items from the sewerage network that shouldn’t be there,” because they find some pretty odd objects underground.
“Some of the more unusual items we have seen in the system include a rubber chicken, credit cards, false teeth, mobile phones, underwear, bandages, golf balls, a shredded mattress and a 250-metre length of rope.”
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