PENSACOLA — An Emerald Coast Utilities Authority employee received an injury from an improperly disposed syringe, according to Jim Roberts, ECUA’s public information strategist.
“(W)e had an employee cleaning out the rim of a lift station 10:22 a.m. Monday,” Roberts said. “When he pulled his hand out, he felt a prick. He pulled his glove off and saw blood. He looked back in and found the syringe … That syringe had to get there by flushing it down the toilet. We see it time and time again in garbage containers and bags."
Roberts said the employee, whom he did not name due to privacy, must take a series of shots.
Roberts regularly gives public talks on sanitation and he said people often ask him how to properly dispose of syringes.
"We recommend to place those used syringes in plastic containers, like a laundry detergent bottle; durable thick plastic and the opening is small, versus a coffee container with a large lid that can pop off during the sanitation compacting process,” he said. “The end result is you have a garbage truck full of needles. There's a good potential for having an employee stuck.”
Milton Public Works Director George Riles said he's never had an employee stuck by a needle in his two and a half years with the city.
"Syringes are medical waste and should be placed in a safe container and disposed of with household trash,” he said. “We don't recommend they be placed loosely."
Pamela Holt, city of Milton public information officer, said residents should break the tip off the syringe first, then use a heavy plastic container like a milk jug or orange juice container and, finally, secure the lid with tape.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Dirty syringe sticks ECUA employee