Front Page  »  

Two kids stuck by a needle in Morro Bay creek

November 10, 2015

needleTwo children were pricked by a needle on Saturday while playing in a Morro Bay Creek that is frequented by the local homeless population. It is not yet clear whether the kids contracted anything from the needle.

During soccer games at Lila Keiser Park, the children went to the creek, according to a city of Morro Bay press release. City staff contacted the children’s parents, who took the children for treatment at a local hospital.

Out of an abundance of caution, both children are scheduled to be retested in six weeks and then in six months, the city said. The city is not releasing the ages of the children.

The needle was also tested, but the test did not produce any definitive information. City staffers will continue working with the family to ensure the children are doing well, the press release states.

For some time, city officials have been concerned about similar issues in the area and have encouraged people to stay away from the creek.

Dynergy, the owner of the now-closed Morro Bay power plant, owns that portion of the creek.

Police officers frequently make contact with the homeless population in the creek. There have been 130 calls for service in the area since January, nearly half of which have been directly generated by patrol officers, according to the news release.

A creek cleanup will take place in the area on Dec. 10 and 11. The city says it is crucial to clean the creek prior to possible flooding caused by El Nino.

On Thursday, Morro Bay’s city manager and eight senior staffers toured the creak area in preparation for the cleanup.

The city encourages anyone who is concerned with public safety issues in the area to dial 911 and seek police assistance.


Loading...
Subjects:                     
Related:


34 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

the city of morro bay administration – laughing stock of the county


0

They’re almost as hilarious as the Republican presidential candidates.


0

Explain how this could happen on YOUR watch Jeremy! Who the hell is protecting the citizens of Morro Bay? It’s time to shift your unyielding desire to save and protect the wildlife of Morro Bay, and start protecting the HUMAN life…you know…the people who pay your salary!


0

This City Council probably thinks that if they could just hire one more Assistant City Manager they might be able to clean out a creek bed without getting fined by the Department of Fish and Game like they did the last time they cleaned out a creek.

This City Council and Administration is hopeless.


0

Zzzzzzz. How long will this broken record keep plying? He’s won twice by a wide margin. Get over it.


0

I’m thinking maybe it’s possible to protect both humans and wildlife…


0

Yates (RIP) and company wouldn’t even support the sea otter? This is a non-partisan issue!


0

See, it was that simple all along, Morro Bay. All you ever needed to justify running the homeless out was have a couple little ones poke their fingers! Brilliant! I hope other towns are watching and learning. Something like this could provide a town with enough hysterical rage to run anyone out of any town. Let’s take back our creeks!


0

So you are in favor intravenous drug users living next to a park and high school?


0

Where do you want them to stay, exactly? How do you know the needle wasn’t used by a diabetic? How do you know that all the people staying down there are intravenous drug users? It appears that the issues involved here are far to complex for your simplified reality.


0

Needles left behind are usually an indication of an area frequented by intravenous drug users. Sure, it might have been a diabetic, if you were born yesterday.


0

So they are all down by the creek shooting up…I was wondering where they all went. McDonalds must of chased them off.


0

It also may have floated down the creek from Atascadero. There are junkies up there, too. (Please don’t say anything about us not having enough rain. I already thought of it and tried to work it into my comment and it didn’t fit.)


0

(Please don’t say anything about us not having enough rain. I already thought of it and tried to work it into my comment and it didn’t fit.)


Okay…


0

Thanks for understanding.


0

Why the city has allowed a homeless encampment to exist adjacent to a park and a high school defies reason.


0

I’ve always said they should have left it where it was, below Burger King. Sure, the BK toilets and sinks got a good workout every day, but at least they didn’t do it in the creek. And BK provides safe garbage cans to dispose of needles in. You just have to be careful taking the trash bags out. One wrong move, and DOINK!, you get a poke in los manos!


0

“For some time, city officials have been concerned about similar issues in the area and have encouraged people to stay away from the creek.”

This kind of thing really hacks me off. The government tells people to stay away from the creek intead of removing the drug-addled zombies that make it unsafe. Penalize the criminals, not the community!


0

No one ever goes down to that creek anyway. When’s the last time you heard a family that lives by the ocean say “Let’s fill up the picnic basket and go down to the creek, that is if it has some water in it.”? Must the homeful have everything? Can’t the homeless at least have a dry, trickling little excuse for a creek?


0

Don’t forget: “drug use is a victimless crime.”


0

By this logic then anything that generates any secondary threats whatsoever is something which has victims.


0

Highlighting the usual rhetoric of political idiocy, a creek cleanup will take place in the area on Dec 10 and 11??? How about NOW city Of Morro Bay, not a month from now? Reschedule your luncheons and awards ceremonies that congratulate yourselves or other non urgent issues that are stopping you from cleaning up the known and ignored ongoing danger. Time to step up Mayor Irons! This is a direct threat and the city will take care of it in a month?The city manager can put up another Parklet before you get to the creek. Do your job today, not in a month.


0

Morro Bay is on the hook for a big lawsuit. It is city’s responsibility to assure that the creek is maintained and if a known hazard, such as homeless in the creek, is allowed to continue there will be more lawsuits. To say that Morro Bay isn’t liable means that Mr. Taylor has no knowledge of the law. And then to say that Morro Bay is going to wait until December 10th or 11th so they can “clean the creek before possible flooding caused by El Nino shows that they don’t see the urgency involved in this and, apparently, can predict when the rain will start a month ahead of time.


And one more thing: Since when does it take a City Manager and eight senior staffers on site to figure out how to clean out a creek?


0

Yes taxpayer, field trip. The” Senior staffers” should have taken garbage bags and gloves while they were down there. Instead they will wait for “The Help” to do any dirty work. God forbid they subject themselves to labor that might be dangerous. Yet it’s fine to let the kids play among the druggies and needles for another month. They rope off the beach to protect a bird but hey, kids are expendable. Watched last night on KSBY, the blame game has started. Both Dynergy and city staff claiming it’s not their job. They actually both said it wasn’t (Their) part of the creek.


0

Where were the parents that should have been watching these kids? And didn’t they teach them not to play with needles? Take responsibility, people.


0
1 2