THE Ombudsman may be asked to investigate why the body of a man who committed suicide was left on the ground for three hours in a Chai Wan estate where it was partially eaten by rats. District Board members and residents of Wan Tsui Estate yesterday complained about the nuisance caused by the body, found lying in front of the rear entrance of Yee Tsui House shortly after 6 am on Friday. A police spokesman said last night that police had called the Urban Services Department (USD) to pick up the corpse after ambulancemen said the man was dead. It was not until three hours later that department staff arrived. Eastern district board member Tsang Kin-shing asked whether the ambulancemen were in a position to determine whether a person was dead and why the USD had delayed in picking up the body. 'The man should have been sent to the hospital immediately and it should be a doctor who should certify whether he was dead or not. 'Although the body was covered with a cloth, the delay had allowed rats to eat parts of it. It was a busy hour in the morning with many people going to school and work,' Mr Tsang said. Mr Tsang and two other Eastern district board members would seek an explanation from officials and were considering reporting the case to the Ombudsman. The police spokesman said although ambulancemen were not medical personnel, they had received sufficient training to certify whether a man was dead. A USD spokesman was not available for comment. A resident said: 'It was sickening to have left the body there for such a long time. The smell was foul.' Resident Ho Siu-lan, who works at a dentist's clinic nearby, said: 'Three old women were nearly scared to death when they found the body outside the rear entrance, which they had to use because one of the lifts was temporarily out of order that morning. 'I dare not walk near that area now,' he said.