Get a load of this incredibly cunning rat’s plan to skive off work today – he pulled the ol’ fire alarm trick, the sweetest of crimes, forcing the whole building to be evacuated.
[jwplayer gvkTjsCy]
You think I’m exaggerating. A rat cannot pull a fire alarm, you say. The fire alarm is a human invention outside of a puny-brained rat’s understanding. How would a rat even know what happens when you pull down the handle on a fire alarm?
Well this one does, because he is highly evolved (fun fact: rats’ brains are similar in structure and function to our brains). He scrambles to the top of a railing, reaches for it, can’t quite get it, then decides to launch himself up just so he can grab that handle, which he sets off before he scurries TF out of there.
A rat pulled a fire alarm in D.C., causing the evacuation of an entire condo building.https://t.co/np5ko0flFN pic.twitter.com/e2qLFZWfxL
— NBC4 Washington (@nbcwashington) September 9, 2018
That rat knows exactly what he’s up to. That rat is a criminal, a real Rattus P. Rattus, without the cool pink hair and black leather vest.
The full footage comes via NBC Washington, who uncovered the security footage of the incident in a Washington DC condo last year just yesterday.
They note that the American capital is currently experiencing something of a rat problem, which The Washington Post noted last month, writing that complaints about rodents in the city reached 5,310 in 2017, a 50% increase from 2016, and are expected to increase even further this year. The plague has even sparked some unsuccessful official responses, like encouraging people to use dry ice bought from the grocery store to kill rats in their homes themselves. They’re also working on garbage management solutions, like installing real fancy solar trash cans, and handing out grants to businesses leasing commercial trash compactors.
And, in case you were considering bunking off work by setting off the fire alarm – because you’re hungover or haven’t gathered the courage to quit yet or maybe you’re just bored – if your office has an automatic fire alarm which calls the fire brigade out under a false pretext, well that’s a paddling fine: all Aussie states and territories charge false alarm fees, eg. $1600 in NSW, $920 in WA, and $1296.95 in Queensland.
Still a pretty impressive effort from the rat, right?
Who ratted him out?! https://t.co/r5ZOk1zqoq
— Julia Waldow (@juliawaldow) September 10, 2018
https://twitter.com/juliacraven/status/1039137811046260737
If Pizza Rat captured the can-do spirit and resourcefulness of New York City circa 2015, Fire Alarm Rat captures the on-the-brink panic of today’s Washington https://t.co/PLohWkkz9n
— Hunter Schwarz (@hunterschwarz) September 10, 2018
New York rats just eat pizza. DC rats are so industrious they cause mass evacuations of condos. https://t.co/s6dePT0RTL
— Elahe Izadi | الهه (@ElaheIzadi) September 10, 2018
He’s gonna be taking ALL DA CHEESE NOW https://t.co/p7mhFOGtt3
— Steph 🧸 (@bbStephoo) September 10, 2018
“Animals wreaking havoc” is the best kind of news https://t.co/cdhPpKYGxx
— Joshua Fechter 📝 (@JoshuaFechter) September 10, 2018
