Ho Chi Minh City folk kick up a stink over private garbage men
HO CHI MINH CITY: Trieu Thi Thoa of Ho Chi Minh City’s District Six says when her neighbours see a vehicle come to collect garbage, all of them close their doors immediately to avoid its stench.
“I am deeply concerned about the safety of the rubbish collectors, mostly poor people, as they never wear a mask or proper clothes when collecting rubbish.
“After they collect the garbage, they jump on top of it to look for something they can sell.
“They don’t care about their health. How can they care for the health of others?”
Since there are not enough public garbage trucks to collect all household rubbish, many private vehicles share in the task.
These are motorbikes modified by their owners by adding a sidecar to carry the garbage to the city’s dumps.
According to city authorities, there are more than 1,000 such vehicles.
Most fail to meet safety and hygiene standards, and leave a foul-smelling trail and pollution wherever they go.
On Cao Thng Street in District 10, dozens of the vehicles ply their routes, causing people to cover their noses against the stink.
It is a similar story in District Three between 6pm and nightfall.
When these vehicles stop to collect rubbish or wait for the traffic signal, people desperately hope the lights turn green quickly.
The situation is worsened when it rains since many of the vehicles are not properly covered and filthy water and garbage trickle out.