PHOENIX — A Phoenix couple faced a trashy situation as their home was turned into a dumping ground for garbage, but as soon as 12 News got involved, things changed.
Robert Herring lives at the corner of 41st and Southern avenues. He said that about three weeks ago, city crews were supposed to do a bulk pick up in the area.
“We set our trash out like normal and they [city crews] turned around and came down and they stopped about four houses down from us and just drove off,” said Herring.
That’s when others started adding to the pile.
“A random driver, he left his household furniture off, he’s off-loading it, and my wife came out, told him ‘You can’t take it there, take it down to Goodwill,’” said Herring.
Herring said he tried to clean some of it in fear of a hefty fine from both the city and his landlord.
That’s when 12 News took action, informing the City of Phoenix, and just a short time later, garbage crews showed up.
City officials said they never received a complaint about the garbage, but plan to inform neighbors about reporting situations like this.
“You know, it’s kind of a drag that we had to go through this type of measure, but yeah, I’m glad it worked out,” said Jane Major, Robert’s wife.
It’s unclear why the garbage wasn’t picked up in the first place, but city officials do warn you that if you’re caught illegally dumping, you could face up to $2,500 in fines.