‘We’ve gone from serving to earthquake and flooding victims to clearing up Birmingham’s bin luggage’ | EUROtoday

A charity that normally responds to world pure disasters has now turned its consideration to clearing the streets of Birmingham amid the continued bin strike.

Aston-based Faizan Global Relief Foundation (FGRF) has beforehand responded to flooding in Pakistan and earthquakes in Turkey and Morocco by sending over provides.

But now its volunteers are working into the early hours to wash up the towering piles of black luggage left due to the seven-week strike.

Volunteer at FGRF Muhammad Wasim is a senior IT engineer by day however has devoted his spare time to clearing the waste. While saying the clean-up wasn’t the charity’s regular line of labor, he pressured that it’s a “public health hazard” and the charity wanted to step up.

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“We normally respond to various disasters… but we also do a lot of work to tackle UK child poverty and helping people in the community get health checks,” he instructed The Independent. “Now the biggest issue in Birmingham with these bin strikes is the black bags that are not being picked up.”

A serious incident was declared by Birmingham City Council on 31 March, which allowed the authority to extend the supply of road cleansing, with an additional 35 automobiles and crews.

But the bin strike has been ongoing resulting from a dispute between the council and Unite the union over pay and job safety.

Mr Wasim stated the group has seen the odd rat and mouse popping out of bin luggage and stated the sheer quantity of garbage is stopping individuals from leaving their houses.

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He added: “There have been some areas we have gone to and the bin bags are literally blocking the pavement.

“We feel sorry for the people living there because obviously it stops them from going out because there are so many bags piled up.”

Mr Wasim stated the charity was working with non-public firms to eliminate the garbage.

Over the previous two weeks the charity has already collected a whole lot of black luggage, due to the group of devoted volunteers.

“The volunteers work eight to 12-hour shifts at their regular jobs and then dedicated their evenings to supporting the city, volunteering six-plus hours and then spending the bank holiday Friday also supporting the community. It is absolutely amazing the dedication we have,” Mr Wasim stated.

One volunteer, Qumar Iqbal, who works as knowledgeable driver, stated: “I was concerned by the litter and unpleasant odours I encountered while working across the city on a daily basis since the strikes began.

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“Motivated to make a difference, I volunteered my time and was proud to witness the positive changes and the uplifting impact it had on Birmingham’s residents.”

One resident from Sparkbrook in south-east Birmingham who gave his name as Sohail said his bags hadn’t been collected in more than two weeks, and it was becoming a “big concern”.

“One night, I saw the volunteers outside with a van and cleaning the street and approached them. They kindly took my household rubbish, which was such a relief and made me really happy,” he stated.

It comes as Shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Alex Burghart, warned of “Rats the size of dachshunds terrifying the local residents.”

He stated the large rats noticed scurrying although waste has prompted fears the piling garbage might end in a surge in rodent-borne ailments.

Union officers have stated the tip of the bin strike is in “touching distance”.