Worcester Installs New Camera System To Catch Illegal Dumpers
WORCESTER (CBS) - Catching illegal dumpers in the act on a new kind of candid camera is the goal of a surveillance system in Worcester.
Let's face it, people can sometimes be, well, slobs tossing trash, old appliances and who knows what, wherever they think they can get away with it. Well, Worcester officials have a message for them- we are watching.
"It's disgusting if you ask me," one woman told us as she stood outside her Worcester home looking at junk on the street.
"We've had this persistent issue in multiple locations throughout the city where people are dumping everything from used couches and mattresses to construction debris," says Worcester City Manager Ed Augustus.
And he wants that dumping to stop. "We've installed cameras at some of the real hot spots in the city," he says.
Seven cameras are operating. They hope they'll catch dumpers in the act. "To try and capture both the image of the person or people doing it, and license plates. And then issuing fines accordingly," Augustus says.
Recently they got pictures showing a man dumping an old tire on the side of the road. He was identified and slapped with a $200 fine. "We want people to realize this is not something we're going to tolerate in the city, and there are going to be consequences," says Augustus.
The cameras are moveable so they can be deployed wherever there's a need. "People are watching and the city is paying attention, and we're responding to our citizens and our neighborhoods," Augustus says.
Fines for illegal dumping in Worcester range from $200 to $2000.
