It’s a dirty job but somebody’s got to do it and Tessa Paris will be handling garbage duty with extra care now.
Two weeks ago, while working her usual midnight shift at Mac’s convenience store uptown, Paris noticed a hypodermic needle poking out of the side of the garbage bag. When she took a closer look, she then noticed a few more needles carelessly placed in the garbage as well.
“My first thought was, ‘I hope all of them have lids on them’,” she said. “There’s nothing you can really do. It’s not like you can monitor the garbage 24 hours a day.”
Paris informed her boss of what she had found and his initial reaction was confusion. He thought she meant sewing needles but when she told him hypodermic needles, he too became just as concerned.
“In the summer, I see all kinds of weird shit in the garbage,” she says. “Bongs, a hammer beside the dumpster and I don’t know what that was used for. I even found a full six-pack of beer. But finding the needles is disgusting.”
The needle Tessa Paris discovered while emptying the garbage at her place of employment.
A local mailman who Paris talks to regularly told her that behind McDonald’s is a hotspot for needle disposal. On one occasion, he told her he had come across a stash of about 50.
It was upon discovering the needles that Paris then went on Facebook to post an image of the needle in the garbage along with a personal message of how disgusted she was with the fact that someone would dispose a needle so carelessly. That post led to multiple comments from her friends, most concurring with Paris’s feelings of concern and disgust. One of Paris’s friend’s, however, posted her own photo of four open needles she found lying under a bench near the former Beer Store.
Whether people are using the needles medically (say for treating diabetes or other diseases) or for illegal purposes like shooting up drugs, disposing needles without caps on the end and carelessly tossing them on the ground is a big concern for the public.
Kelly Haywood, executive director of the Huntsville/Lake of Bays Chamber of Commerce, told Doppler that in the chamber’s former location near River Mill Park, finding used and open needles in the garbage was an ongoing concern for staff, as they were responsible for maintaining the public washrooms in the building.
It was quite a surprise to see that happening initially. We did a little research and tried to understand if there was a pattern and we discovered there was. We would do regular spot checks of the washrooms and there’s always a tendency to shove garbage down with your hand being it was always paper towel. I had to tell my team to never do that. We started to see needles laying around, but then the town took over and installed receptacles. There was definitely regular use and there would be heaps of used needles in them.– Kelly Haywood on needles found in former Chamber building washrooms.
Haywood could not confirm whether the needles were being used for medical reasons or for drug purposes, although she did state that there were regular “shenanigans” that occurred in the washrooms such as vandalism.
The Huntsville Public Library’s CEO/Chief Librarian Debra Duce indicated that the needle receptacles that were installed in the library by the town around five years ago eliminated concerns of improper needle disposal. The library is frequently visited by individuals who have health problems and need to use needles regularly.
“With the help of the health unit we are going to get more up-to-date bins,” said Duce. “The receptacles are very visible being bright yellow and located right by the sinks. Our only hope is that people will use them safely and responsibly. If anyone finds a needle in the bathroom, come let us know immediately.”
Mia Brown, a public health nurse with the Simcoe-Muskoka District Health Unit recommends taking note from the health unit’s needle tipsheet. It’s valuable information for parents and children if they ever have an encounter with an unsafe needle.
The tipsheet recommends that if you come across a needle or any other sharp object to get a pair of gloves and place the item in a sealable container, sharp end pointing down. Immediately wash your hands. Take the container to the health unit office or to a household hazardous waste disposal site. Don’t try to remove, bend or recap the needle and don’t throw it in the garbage or recycling bin or flush it down a toilet. For more information visit www.simcoemuskokahealth.org.
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