Army specialists have been deployed to assist Birmingham City Council as the city grapples with an escalating rubbish crisis stemming from a month-long strike by refuse workers. The strike, which commenced on 11 March, has left thousands of tonnes of rubbish uncollected in the city due to a dispute over pay.
The situation has reached a critical point, prompting the council to declare a major incident on 31 March as public health concerns intensify. Residents have reported alarming sightings of rats that are "the size of cats" scuttling through the streets in full view, alongside complaints regarding the pervasive stench from overflowing black bin bags that now clutter the urban landscape.
In response to these mounting issues, the government has intervened by sending a contingent of military office-based planners to provide temporary logistical support. It is important to note that this deployment will not involve soldiers directly collecting rubbish but focuses instead on assisting the council with operational planning to manage the crisis more effectively.
A government spokesperson stated: “The Government has already provided a number of staff to support the council with logistics and make sure the response on the ground is swift to address the associated public health risks. In light of the ongoing public health risk, a small number of office-based military personnel with operational planning expertise have been made available to Birmingham City Council to further support in this area. This builds on a range of measures we’ve supported the council on to date – including neighbouring authorities providing additional vehicles and crews, and opening household waste centres to Birmingham residents.”
The situation in Birmingham continues to develop as authorities work to mitigate the adverse effects of the strike and restore order to the city's waste management services.
Source: Noah Wire Services