Weymouth postie's needle terror

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/450336 ... le_terror/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A POSTIE who stabbed his finger on a syringe dumped in a postbox says lives are being put at risk by drug addicts.

Dad Darren Hawdon was collecting from a postbox on the Esplanade when he suddenly felt the needle and pulled his hand out to find it had pierced his skin.

He immediately went to the hospital but faces a wait for test results after he was checked for hepatitis B and HIV.

Mr Hawdon said his colleagues have found needles before but he’s never heard of anyone pricking their hand on one.

He said: “It’s getting worse.

“I had my hand out to grab the letters when I felt a sharp pin prick and found a syringe had pierced the skin.

“I thought ‘oh my God.’ “I’ve been tested for hepatitis B and HIV.

“I was told at the hospital that there’s 80 per cent chance that it’s fine as the blood is dry and not fresh.”

Mr Hawdon’s pregnant girlfriend Kimberley Paice was horrified when he telephoned her from Weymouth Community Hospital to tell her what happened before he went for tests at Dorset County Hospital.

Mr Hawdon, 36, of Ranelagh Road, Weymouth, has been a postman for 20 years.

He said: “She went ballistic when I phoned her from the hospital.

“She’s expecting our child in October and she’s dead worried.

“She’s thinking ‘what if you’ve got this’ and ‘what if you’ve got that.’ “Waiting for test results is not the best way to spend six months.”

Mr Hawdon already has an eight-year-old son who is about to visit him for the summer holidays.

He added: “The last thing you want to tell your son is ‘I’ve got whatever.’ “I haven’t got a problem with people using drugs but just keep it to themselves.

“Don’t put other people’s lives at risk.

The postbox where Mr Hawdon pricked his finger is close to the King’s Statue and outside the EDP Drug and Alcohol service.

An EDP spokesman said they have a needle exchange there and strive to advise drug users to dispose of any drugs or equipment responsibly.

He said: “It’s just absolutely thoughtless and brainless behaviour isn’t it?

“They don’t care about the pain that they could potentially inflict on someone or they are just so out of it that they dump it in the first place they see.

“Now and again we get needles found and it could be the time of year and people visiting.

“I don’t want to blame anyone but I don’t think our service users would do that on their own doorstep.

“They have a lot of respect for the service and are all quite responsible.”

Dog warden Ian Lewis collects needles that are reported to Environmental Health by members of the public and gives educational presentations to schoolchildren on the dangers of picking them up.

He said: “At schools I hold up a syringe and ask ‘how many of you have seen one of these before’ and I can guarantee everybody sticks their hands up.

“It’s frightening when you think about what could happen and what does happen with people picking up dirty needles.”

Mr Lewis said needles are often found dumped in milk bottles left out for collection.

He said the Park District, the Nothe and around the Rodwell Trail are the most affected areas and that more needles are found in the summer.

[NWpostie]

In Australia in most Public loos , which I have seen, they have needle dumps, a small yellow boxes, with a shaped hole designed to make it easy to drop a needle in but hard to take it out, we could do with something like that and also next to Public bins so they can put it there instead of bins and Postboxes.

its one of the reason I came off driving amongst others.

[brothermagrew]

I know of at least one Cumbrian colleague a while back who had the same type of needle injury happen to him. And I beleive that it has also happened to others prior to him.