INDIANAPOLIS — A mountain of garbage in a south side apartment complex was a sight for sore eyes and a smell for a stuffy nose as dozens of bags of garbage piled up so high, it was as tall as the dumpster it was supposed to be in.
"I honestly think it's taller than the dumpster, so I would say at least 10 feet high and probably more than that wide. It's not an exaggeration. It's huge," Hayley Natsch said.
Natsch is a resident at the Overlook at Valley Ridge apartment complex. She is one of the many residents who were greeted by a massive mound of trash piled up and in and outside the trash collection area at the front of the complex. It's an issue southsiders contacted RTV6 about, saying it's a problem that's gone on for too long.
"I don't know why they're not taking care of it, but yeah, it's just a giant mountain of trash bags, so I don't know whats going on with that, but it's definitely an eyesore and a safety hazard, too, not just for people's kids but for people like me who have pets and walk them out here all the time. So its a concern for everyone," Natsch said.
RTV6 took those concerns to the complex's management team to learn why the trash was piled so high.
The apartment complex manager said they have called Republic Services since Monday. A spokesperson for Republic Services told RTV6 the trash pile-up may have been due to a scheduling issue. By Wednesday afternoon, we spotted crews cleaning up the trash, piece by piece.
Natsch said she hopes the damage hasn't already been done.
"I'm pretty sure there's probably already rats over there," she said. "If not, I could definitely see that being a problem."
Residents said the trash pile-up has been an issue before. RTV6 will keep checking to make sure the complex has solved the issue for good.
