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Medical waste washing up on Palm Beach

Posted at 7:28 PM, Jul 06, 2018
and last updated 2018-07-06 19:28:41-04

Needles, IV bags and pills that's what one local group says is washing up on the beach.

For hours the group "Friends of Palm Beach" worked to clean up Palm Beach, Friday.

Monday through Friday you'll find the group cleaning up Palm Beach and they say they never know what they might find, but lately, some of their discoveries have caused concern.

"In the last 6 months it's more than usual," Robyn Kennedy said.

She's talking about medical waste. On other cleanups, Kennedy says she has found IV bags and needles. 

We were with her crew as they discovered more medical waste washed up on the beach.

"That is a medical vial that's what the medicine is in that they insert with a syringe and a needle to pull out the medication," she said.

Kennedy says usually they find the waste caught in seaweed.

"You know it all comes in with the current none of it's local. It's really a shame," she said.

The Mayor of Palm Beach said there is not illegal dumping on the beach. But she told us she's aware of the issue and that she wrote a letter to state and federal regulators asking for help.

"So there's not only a town-wide effort but a community effort to collect and dispose of them properly," Mayor Gail Coniglio said.

For now, Kennedy and her crew won't be slowing down.

"Our goal is to get bigger, grow faster, change other lives and help the environment. Nothing is going to stop us we are going to keep going," she said.