HUNGRY HORSE — It’s a growing problem in Flathead County.
Inoperable cars, campers and trailers are being left all over county roads with some being used for living spaces before being deserted altogether.
Flathead County service members are left to clean up the mess, often putting themselves into dangerous situations.
“So, four of my operators that would normally be doing something completely different, they’re out here doing this," said Flathead County Solid Waste Operations Manager Don Ratliff.
Getting pulled away from your normal day job to clean up somebody else’s mess.
That’s the case for Flathead County law enforcement, Solid Waste and Road and Bridge department workers, cleaning up inoperable vehicles and trailers left behind on county roadways.
“There’s a lot of resources being here that basically, the taxpayers are the ones that are paying for this, you know this isn’t part of our budget per say, and it’s getting worse," added Ratliff.
Ratliff said service crews are getting called out monthly to clean up the mess.
He said roads must be constantly cleared so county snowplows can do their job throughout the fall and winter.
“A lot of people don’t understand the things that we do at the landfill and the road department, you know behind the scenes stuff that does get missed.”
Ratliff said county crews must be delicate while cleaning up, as hazardous material may be left behind such as propane tanks and drug paraphernalia.
“You know there’s a chance that does have a fuel tank still on it, if the right set of circumstances happen, you know the tank could possibly, a spark could get in it and we could have an explosion or a fire or something like that, so you know you just have to be aware of,” said Ratliff.
Ratliff said the public can help Flathead County workers by alerting law enforcement of inoperable living spaces parked or deserted on county roads or private property.
“You know it seems like everybody has a phone, you know usually a quick picture goes a long ways.”
He said it takes a community effort to keep Flathead County roadways clean and safe.
“We want everybody to be safe, we like Montana, we like it clean, I know I do, you know that’s why I’m in the landfill business is to make sure it gets put to bed right.”
