Children exposed to hazardous waste at illegal dumpsite
Gruesome find prompts concerns about medical waste disposal procedures not being properly followed.
An illegal dumpsite in Mariannhill has exposed children to hypodermic needles, syringes, foetuses in glass jars and other medical waste.
Following yesterday’s gruesome find of a number of foetuses by a group of local children at an illegal dumpsite, focus has shifted to the potentially dangerous situation of medical waste being disposed of in an illegal manner.
According to police spokesman Col. Jay Naicker, there’s no criminal investigation at this stage, although there are concerns about medical waste disposal procedures not being properly followed after locals reported seeing people clearing the premises of an old doctor’s surgery in Desai.
According to the guidelines for the management of healthcare waste compiled by the Health Professional’s Council of South Africa, medical waste may have the potential to harm people, property or the environment, and that the unsafe disposal of such waste could have detrimental effects for people who might come into contact with it.
