A recent discovery of roughly 50 needles in the sand at the Esquimalt Lagoon in Colwood has prompted the City to respond with extra efforts to make sure the beaches are safe for residents.
Colwood’s communication manager Sandra Russell said bylaw officers already do a daily beach clean-up along the Lagoon, but have added additional staff members for an “intense” check.
She said this extra effort will continue until there is an extended period in which no needles have been discovered.
Since the initial discovery, officers have continued to find a handful of needles, but only one or two at a time.
Last week, at least one of their searches yielded no results and City staff hope that trend will continue.
Russell said it wasn’t clear if the needles were dumped from the bridge or from a boat, but they definitely came ashore from the ocean and were not placed there by someone.
“It was quite clear they came and washed ashore,” said Russell, adding it was evident in the way they were discovered in the sand at the high tide line. She said it appeared that a number of the needles were for insulin and some still had their orange packaging.
The City also contacted Island Health to confirm there are no other additional measures they should be taking.
“We’re really grateful for the people that called promptly to let City staff know,” Russell said adding that if any residents have concerns, City Hall staff members are happy to take their calls.
katie@goldstreamgazette.com