With the opioid/heroin epidemic
going on in Snohomish County and the number of homeless in the county, residents
have been finding needles on the ground in some areas of the county. While most
of us might judge that whoever left the needles were acting carelessly, the
fact remains that the needles are on the ground and there is a concern that an
accidental poke from one of them could spread disease to our families.
In some areas of Everett,
community neighbors have banded together to pick up abandoned needles in their
neighborhoods. Most of us, probably do not know what to do if we find a needle
on the ground.
You can call for help from your
local law enforcement agency. But, understand, it may take some time for a
deputy or a police officer to come to the site and take care of the needle(s).
If you would like to call, use one of the following non-emergency numbers:
·
SNOPAC (Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, and
cities in the northern part of the county)- (425) 407-3999
·
SNOCOM (Incorporated cities in the southwest
part of the county)- (425) 775-3000
If you would like to pick up the
needle(s) yourself, the Snohomish Health District has recently posted instructions
on how to handle needles. It is also offering a free needle clean-up kit that
you can pick up at Health District headquarters in Everett during normal
business hours. To see those instructions, and a how-to video, go to,
Snohomish Health District:
No comments:
Post a Comment