Traders return to market after cockroach infestation

Traders at Sheffield's Moor Market said they are "ecstatic" to see the doors reopen after more than two weeks of closures caused disruption to their businesses.

The market was shut by the city council on June 26 as a result of an infestation of cockroaches.

An "extensive programme" of treatment, deep cleaning and monitoring was carried to allow trade to resume, according to the council.

The market reopened after no pest activity was detected for two consecutive days.

Patricia Munroe-Smith has run County Hair Fashion from the market since it opened in 2013.

She said: "This is our salon, this is our second home. We love her, she's our baby.

"I'm absolutely ecstatic that the market is open again. It was so depressing not being able to come to work, not being able to give the service that we're used to giving to our clients."

Traders faced uncertainty over when they would be able to return to the market, which hosts more than 90 independent stalls.

"We were told at two minutes to midnight that the market was going to be closed the following day," Munroe-Smith said.

Andrew Dao, 55, also runs a salon in the market and said that he lost members of staff as a result of the market closure.

"All my staff had gone, and I got only a few back. I've normally got five. Now I've got only three people."

Anne Cutts, 58, from the Beauty Gift Box which opened only a few months before the Moor Market temporarily closed, worried that trade might be slow at first.

"It's going to take time obviously for people to start trusting market again," she said.

Sheffield City Council added that enhanced prevention measures would remain in place as part of the pest monitoring.

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