Glass in garbage bag injures St. John's worker

A City of St. John's worker was seriously injured on Tuesday after he was cut by a piece of glass inside a garbage bag left on an east end street.

The worker was collecting garbage on Guzzwell Drive when the incident happened.

The employee lost a significant amount of blood at the scene but was treated and stabilized by paramedics and taken to hospital.

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary is investigating the incident, as are both the City of St. John's and the provincial government's occupational health and safety division.

The city warned homeowners that shards of glass can be very dangerous if not packaged properly.

"Broken glass can be put in a puncture-proof container and put in the bag, or put it in a separate cardboard box, tape it up and clearly mark it as broken glass," Jason Sinyard, manager of the city's waste management division, told CBC News.

"Then our collectors know to take precaution, and we'll make sure no one gets hurt like this again."