Want to get rid of the grime? Be prepared to pitch in!
The Department of Sanitation is asking everyone in the five boroughs to removee snow from garbage bags and cans to expedite their rubbish and recycling pick-ups, which resume today. To help speed up the process, they are aalso asking you to clear a path for workers if snow and ice are in the way.
Since last week's storm, garbage piles have been growing across the city. In some spots, rats are running rampant. But the waste pile-up is just one symptom of our unusually harsh winter. Over the weekend, the Department of Sanitation was doing it's best to clear as much snow as possible, but we found cars still completely covered. And the excess garbage is bringing a few other problems to the snow-clogged streets.
"There's garbage under the ice, there's garbage on top of the ice, there's garbage everywhere and it's just a mess," said
Joseph Corkill.
"It's nasty. In this neighborhood there's rats everywhere in the morning when we're walking around. It's just terrible and it hasn't been cleaned in days."
And with another storm just a day away, get ready to face more challenges. Snow budgets have been exhausted across the tri-state: New York City blew through it's allotted amount--more than 38-million dollars--after the December blizzard. The city has cleared more than 56 inches of snow thus far this winter--36 inches in January alone, making this a record breaking month.
Before the impending storm, the National Weather Service is warning home and business owners to clear snow from roofs to avoid any potential collapses. All this, while many municipalities are still having trouble figuring out where to put all the snow being removed from the streets.
Also, don't forget the FDNY is still asking for help clearing any blocked hydrants.
When does spring start again?
