COLUMBUS, Ohio - There were nearly 2,000 reports of missing or stolen trash cans in the City of Columbus in 2013.
When a number of homeowners were recently told they were going to have to pay for missing trash cans, they called NBC4 to investigate.
“We don’t know what happened, it just disappeared,” said homeowner Florence Booker.
Booker says she called the city a couple of weeks ago to see if they knew what had happened when her trash can disappeared.
“You know, I called the 311 number that you call the city for trouble, but she didn’t know and she asked me and I said I don’t know what happened to it,” said Booker.
Another homeowner caught the disappearance of their trash can on camera.
Thanks to a home surveillance camera, a truck operator was caught on video placing the trash can on the lift to the truck. When the arm lowered, the trash can was missing, according to the video.
For nearly 10 seconds, the truck operator seems to be contemplating what to do, before giving up and moving on.
The driver was supposed to report the incident, but when the homeowner called the city, he was told there was no report of the missing can. He was told he would have to pay $100 for a new can – that’s when he took his surveillance video to city hall.
A spokesman for the Department of Public Service says sometimes mechanical failures cause the cans to fall into the truck. Now the driver and the incident are under investigation and the owner was given a new can at no charge.
The trash-related complaints are among the most common calls to the city’s 311 Service Center. The City’s interactive website demonstrates it well. A 30-day map shows how big of a problem trash collection is.
