While this is something that has been stressed before, it is something that cannot be stressed enough and that is garbage chute safety.
There has been news from around the country about incidents that have occurred with trash chutes.
In one case on June 20, an 8 year old boy was taken to the hospital in serious condition after he fell 12-stories down a Hawaiian trash chute. Fortunately, it appears that the boy will be okay.
In April, an 80-year-old woman fell down a garbage chute. The woman lived on the 17th floor of her apartment building and was nowhere to be found. It would be several days before her body was located at the bottom of the chute. A year prior, a teenage boy had fallen to his death down a garbage chute in the same building.
So this once again brings about the topic of garbage chute safety.
First, never lean inside a garbage chute, as it is very easy to lose your balance and fall. Those that fall tend to do so because they are leaning in to take a look up or down the chute. Another reason why this is dangerous is because others on upper floors may throw down trash, hit you, and this can pull you in.
Second, be sure to leave the cleaning and unclogging to the professionals. There are individuals who have tried to unclog a chute by using a broomstick or they felt they had to clean them themselves. Professional garbage chute maintenance companies have the right tools, chemicals, and safety equipment to clean chutes.
Third, do not throw chemicals down a chute to make it “smell better” or anything of that sort. Some chemicals when mixed with other items can create a harmful chemical reaction. This can compromise air quality and make people in the building sick.
Overall, garbage chute safety comes down to using care, never leaning over to take a look, and keeping chemicals out of chutes even if you think they’re harmless. When you do this and you help others in your building ensure they are mindful of garbage chutes, there are fewer accidents.
