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Worker caught dumping liquid waste in front of Denver home

Posted at 10:28 PM, Apr 03, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-03 22:28:15-04

DENVER – A Denver garbage truck worker should probably remember cameras are everywhere these days.

Karen Bautista's home Ring camera caught the city worker dumping liquid waste in front of her home near the corner of South Ingalls Street and West Floyd Avenue in the Bear Valley neighborhood on the morning of March 14.

"All this brown, gross, waste-like sewage stuff came out," said Bautista, 43. "It smelled like rotten poop."

She told KDVR she is incredulous that a city worker would nonchalantly be seen on video pulling a latch on his truck and letting brown goo spill onto the street by her curbside.

"It was terrible, horrible. I mean, that's just a wrongful act. Why would you do something like that?" Bautista said.

"It was definitely a poor choice of location for that," said Nancy Kuhn, the public information officer for Denver's Department of Public Works.

Kuhn said despite the smell, what was dumped was not raw sewage but a mixture of mud, dirt and trash debris. Garbage workers are supposed to empty the liquid trash at the landfill or a transfer station.

"We apologize and we’re going to go back out and see if there’s any of that material left in the street. We’re going to clean it up," said Kuhn.

Kuhn could not say if the worker caught on camera would be disciplined, but she did say all staff is being reminded of the proper procedures for disposing of waste from refuse trucks.

"Isn’t it ironic that they’re supposed to come pick up your trash and they actually delivered it to you?" said Bautista.