Syringe stinger

By Kelly Yates
DON’T pick up syringes.
That’s the message from a community volunteer after he was jabbed by a used syringe last Tuesday morning.
Phil Hughes was picking up a handful of rubbish in the wetlands adjacent to Narre Warren South P-12 College when he got the nasty shock.
“I received a jab from the used syringe that was hidden under a few bits of rubbish,” he said.
Despite wearing leather gloves, the needle pierced his skin.
“After a few choice words, I found a sharps container with about seven used syringes in it,” he said.
Mr Hughes then noticed more than 13 syringes lying around the area.
“What concerns me is that this is happening about 75 metres from the Amberly Park Drive school’s boundary fence,” he said.
“The fence is just over a metre high and the area is accessible to all students at the school.”
Mr Hughes, the coordinator of the Narre Warren South Friends of River Gum Creek Reserve, said he had spent the past few weeks picking up litter that had accumulated from the school grounds and ended up in the wetlands.
He said in all his seven years as a volunteer cleaning up the reserve, he had never seen so many syringes in such a small area.
Mr Hughes will now play the waiting game for his hepatitis test results, after having a tetanus injection and several blood tests.
Mr Hughes notified both the principal and vice principal of the school regarding the danger that was lurking in their back yard.
Narre Warren South P-12 College principal Rob Casamento said the syringes were found on public land, not on the school’s property. “We are concerned for the welfare of our students but it’s an issue for the City of Casey as it’s on council owned land,” he said.
City of Casey manager community safety Caroline Bell said the council had not received any complaints this year regarding used syringe pick-ups around Narre Warren South P-12 College and the neighbouring reserve.
Overall, the City of Casey has noted a decrease in the number of syringe pick-ups from public places, said Ms Bell.
In 2007, the council received 68 requests and so far this year the council has received 38 requests.
The council has a policy of collecting syringes in public places within two hours of receiving a request, including out of hours calls.
Residents who come across a syringe in a public place are urged to contact the City of Casey on 9705 5200 to report the location so the syringe can be safely removed.