Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
City officials are asking anyone who uses hypodermic needles to begin safely disposing of the items.
Instead of just tossing the needles into trash, public works superintendent Kim Leake is urging users to consider three options.
Three pharmacies - Brennan's, Zales and the Pill Box - accept used syringes and sell "sharps containers" designed to hold the items. Another option is an inexpensive needle clipper that retains the needle and makes the remaining syringe safe to dispose of.
The third option is to store used syringes in thick, plastic bleach bottles and then discard the containers inside household trash.
The request is being made on behalf of garbage collectors, who occasionally find needles in the garbage. In one instance, a garbage bag had broken open and needles were strewn into the street, Leake said.
If the workers are injured from the needles, they could be infected with AIDS or hepatitis and face upward of three years of testing as a precaution, Leake said.
