Posted: May 25th, 2012 - 12:06pm
Source: wkyc

NORTHEAST OHIO -- Listeria, a potentially deadly food-borne bacteria, was found in high levels of fluids dripping from garbage trucks onto neighborhood streets, a Channel 3 News investigation found.
The bacteria has a mortality rate of 20 percent and, according to microbiologist Roger Pryor, of Accra Labs in Twinsburg, it poses an especially significant threat to the elderly, children and to pregnant women.
Channel 3 news collected samples of fluids spilling from garbage trucks in Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Maple Heights and Brooklyn and had them tested.
In addition to listeria, Accra Labs found very high levels of bacteria and low levels of salmonella.
Cleveland City Councilman Mike Polensek says homeowners in the Collinwood neighborhood he represents often complain about the filthy stains left behind by city trash haulers.
A number of cities, including Cleveland, are turning to newer container trucks which are not supposed to leak fluids.
But Channel 3 news found newer trucks leaking fluid in both Cleveland and in Maple Heights.
A simple drain plug, which we found at a local store for less than $2, can be an easy fix. But service directors in several communities say the plug can pose a hazard to workers collecting the garbage.