Residents of a private housing area in Ust-Kamenogorsk have endured years of foul odors and live in constant fear of fire because a neighbor has turned his plot into an illegal dump, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to the KTK television channel, over three decades the man has piled his yard high with household waste, boxes and scrap metal. Neighbors complain that the huge heaps of junk leave them constantly choking on the stench. They are also alarmed by an invasion of rodents and insects and by the ever-present threat of a major fire.
Local resident Maria Briginets says the problem dates back to 1993, when the man moved into the house with his father and immediately began hauling old belongings there.
"I already live in fear that these fires could happen — God forbid. Right now I have three minor children. Every night I have nightmares that there's a fire and, God forbid, we all burn. This is our only home," the woman said of her worries.
It is noted that volunteers had already joined efforts to tackle the problem two years ago. At the time, the volunteers managed to partly clear the area and haul away several truckloads of garbage. Some of the finds were even sold at a profit, and the volunteers honestly handed the proceeds to the owner of the plot. But since then the man has dragged even more junk into the yard, completely undoing the earlier cleanup.
Fed up with the unsanitary conditions, angry neighbors confronted the owner face to face. The 62-year-old resident is known to lead a reclusive life and tries to go outside mainly under cover of darkness. This time, people managed to shame the trash collector in the presence of the press.
The man tried to defend himself, claiming he had brought nothing into the yard, but under public pressure he nevertheless agreed to have the area cleared.
After journalists took up the story, representatives of the city akimat and the local district police inspector promptly arrived at the scene. The homeowner officially signed an agreement for the utility work to be carried out.
"Residents have been complaining for many years. Now the equipment has arrived. Active young people from the regional center are helping. Two KamAZ trucks have already hauled waste away. We are working," said Madina Muratkanova, a representative of the press service of the akim of Ust-Kamenogorsk, commenting on the situation.
Although heavy machinery has begun clearing the years-old piles, only a small portion of the accumulated garbage has been removed so far. Local residents are skeptical and fear the man will soon go back to his old ways. They are also demanding that the authorities carry out mandatory and thorough sanitary treatment of the entire surrounding area to wipe out the pests that have multiplied there. According to them, because of this toxic neighbor, they cannot even sell their homes now.