I never know what I'm going to find when I do a trash walk along the river. That's a single dose vial of Naloxone, the drug that can save the life of a person who is experiencing a heroin drug overdose. I picked it up along the river at the sitting area across from the Federal Reserve Bank in downtown Minneapolis. The good news is that perhaps someone had a second chance at getting out from this terrible epidemic. I wonder how available this drug is to the general public. Do you need a prescription for it? Could a family member get it easily? How expensive is it?
I picked this needle up yesterday at the beach on the north side (Fisherman's Point) of Bassett Creek. I've been out trash walking maybe 12 times this spring and I think this is my fourth or fifth needle that I've picked up. I always place them inside an empty plastic bottle and dispose of in the trash. So some cities are starting to put up needle disposal boxes in parks where they have a problem. Is it time for Minneapolis Park and Rec to think about doing the same? I would use a needle container to drop off the ones I find and maybe it would give the city an indication of how many are found. And we need to remember that our parks are widely used by all sorts of people including folks who bring their 5 year old down to the river to learn how to skip stones. I guarantee you that kid is going to pick up that needle.
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