Lincoln’s recent bout of dangerous extreme heat has made it tough to work outside… especially if you are a trash hauler.
Heat index values of 113° and higher don’t stop sanitation workers from making their rounds and picking up your trash. KLIN News spoke with Tony Dutter, Director of recruiting for Uribe Refuse Services, who said garbage crews are taking extra precaution to stay cool as temperatures soar.
“A lot of our crews are communicating the night before, talking with their partner… figuring out if they should start at 2 a.m., 3 a.m., or 4 a.m. to try to beat the heat. The earlier they start, the cooler it will be,” Dutter described. “Leadership is telling crews to stop and fill up with water and Gatorade as much as you need to, we also typically will have some water on ice, or the famous bomb pop, back at the shop for when they get back.”
A two person refuse-crew is made up of a driver and a “shagger” who rides on the back and pitches trash into the truck. Dutter says inside the giant, entirely-steel Uribe dumpster truck, it can be worse than the scorchig heat outdoors.
“The trucks do have air conditioning, but with that engine running hot and the hydraulics behind us, it can get hotter in the truck than it is outside. The driver has the AC blowing, but the shagger usually stays outside the truck because it’s a lot cooler in the wind then it is in that truck,” said Dutter.
As crews complete their route, shaggers will keep an eye out for active yard sprinklers for a quick cool off, or neighbors with a running hose spraying them as they drive by.
As far as our trash left on the curb… searing heat tends to have an unpleasant effect.
“When it gets this hot, the flies love to feed their babies… so it can be maggots galore,” Dutter admit with a certain familiarness. “However, it’s also a little bit lighter because people aren’t cleaning out the garage and doing yard work there. They’re hiding inside, too.”
On the bright side, crews can enjoy their shop-freezer bomb pops a bit sooner.
Americans throw out an estimated 4.9 pounds of trash per person every day — nearly 1,800 pounds of materials per American every year. So just one day off could result in some serious trash build up, but Uribe crews continue to find ways to beat the heat.