A MINI market has been closed down by environmental health inspectors after they found a 'serious infestation of rats'.

The inspectors said the infestation, at Bastwell Foods, Plane Street, Blackburn, was the worst they had ever come across.

They told their bosses they could hear the 'sound of rats scuttling about', the council said.

And evidence was found of rats nibbling on raw meat for sale in the store, and droppings were found scattered all over the floor, the council said.

Chris Allen, head of trading standards and environmental health at Blackburn with Darwen council, said the store had been closed on Monday following repeated visits because of a "clear risk to public health".

The store was first inspected on Friday following a tip-off from a member of the public. On one visit an inspector caught and kept one of the rats as evidence, the council said.

Mr Allen said: "Environmental health officers, acting on information from the community, visited the shop and found evidence of a serious infestation of rats.

"There was a clear risk to public health so we have formally closed the shop and are working with the owners to remedy the situation.

"The shop will remain closed until we are satisfied that there is no risk of contamination to food or its packaging and no risk to public health.

"Once that is certain, the shop can re-open and we will consider whether formal action is appropriate in due course."

The council said its environmental health officers told their bosses it was the worst case they had ever come across.

Environmental Health deals with one or two cases of rat infestation a year and mice and cockroaches are more common, Mr Allen added.

Prosecutions under the Food Safety Act can carry fines of up to £5,000.

The shop was locked with the shutters down yesterday afternoon.

One Plane Street resident said: "I use it all the time and I had no idea. As far as anyone round here knew, they were refurbishing it and just opening two or three days a week while that was going on.

"We thought it was going to be back open again as usual."

In September Bastwell Foods was given one out of five stars by council food hygiene inspectors as part of the Scores on the Doors' ratings.

They said hygiene and safety was "fair", but said they had "little" confidence in the management's control of food safety.

Scores on the Doors, accessed through www.blackburn.gov.uk, is part of a national scheme and lists ratings for all food sellers in the borough.