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Open invite to clean dirty play park equipment in Inverness


By Donna MacAllister

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Michael Catterson with his son looking at the damaged park.
Michael Catterson with his son looking at the damaged park.

A FUMING dad has posted a message online asking if anyone could “spare a bit of free time to clean human crap” off his children’s play park.

Delivery driver Michael Catterson (33) says a youngster pooped in the play tunnel several months ago and traces of the excrement could still be seen. He suspects it could have been done as a prank.

The post read: “Hi. I was wondering if there was anyone in Inverness who would be willing to spare a bit of free time to clean human crap off a kids play area in Merkinch... apparently it’s been reported to Highland Council but it’s still not been cleaned up.”

More than 40 people left comments on the Facebook post.

One of Mr Catterson’s neighbours commented: “How awful! It’s not the fist time this has happened. It was reported a few months back that someone peed and pooped. It was cleaned up.” Someone else said the council workers who’d be cleaning it up had her sympathy – and if pranksters were to blame “they must have issues”.

Mr Catterson, who recently moved into the Merkinch area, told the Highland News it saddened him to have to admit it but some youngsters clearly had no respect for the park.

And he said that was upsetting for the vast majority of residents who cared deeply for the area.

“We even have an old woman who goes into the park and picks up all the rubbish they leave lying behind them and when we were there at the weekend with the kids I was picking up rubbish too and I had to remove big stones from the play area.

“The last thing you’d want is someone coming in there and lobbing those around.”

He said a wooden climbing frame had also been vandalised so slats were missing.

“The park has only been open a couple of months and the first day it opened a kid did a poo in the play tunnel. Apparently it was reported to the council but we went there at the weekend and it looks like its still there and the kids are going into that tunnel,” he added.

He is contacting the council’s environmental health team.

A council spokeswoman said bio-hazards can be reported on its website.

She could not confirm whether the issue at Merkinch was reported due to the way complaints are logged.


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