Needles put kids at risk

A Morecambe couple has hit out at the addicts responsible after finding a plastic bottle containing three used syringes near their home.

They are also calling for a 24-hour drop-off point for used needles.

The bottle was in bushes on the cycle path off Westgate, a stone's throw from Westgate County Primary School.

Steve Reynolds was walking the family pup with his four-year-old son when the collie, Toffee, found the offending bottle.

Steve, who lives near the path, says: "Toffee will look in the undergrowth to find a plastic bottle if you don't have something to throw."

He found a bottle on Friday night - and inside it were three hypodermic needles.

"I couldn't believe it - I thought my eyes were deceiving me. My wife Diane is a nurse so I brought the bottle home so she could get rid of it safely at the hospital," says Steve.

Diane is fearful of what could have happened if children had made the discovery.

She told the Citizen: "It is disgusting and dangerous and there's no excuse because there's a Needle Exchange. You take dirty needles there and they discard them and give out new needles."

Morecambe police's Sgt Sean McKirgan says anyone who knows about people discarding needles in that area of Morecambe is asked to contact PC Lance Thomson, community beat manager for Wetsgate, on 01524-63333.

Keith Murphy, of Morecambe Bay PCT's drug and alcohol services, said: "It is totally irresponsible and unnecessary for needles to be left out in the community.

"Drug users have a responsibility to themselves and the public."

o Drug users can exchange used needles around the district, including: Needle Exchange, Deansgate, Morecambe, (10.30am to 1pm, weekdays) and Lower Priory Hall in Lancaster (9am to 5pm).

o Chemists offering the service include Fox and Medcalfe in King Street, Lancaster, and Morecambe's Park Street Pharmacy; Lloyds, Hanover Street; Vantage Pharmacy, Yorkshire Street; and Heysham Road, Heysham.