World’s first ‘human detector’ to protect homeless people sleeping in bins launched

A waste management company has developed a device to help protect homeless people who seek shelter inside industrial bins.

As temperatures drop across the country, waste containers become increasingly important for rough sleepers, of which there are currently 320,000 in the UK, according to the latest research by Shelter.

While finding people sleeping inside bins is relatively rare, the rise in homelessness means that it is becoming an increasingly common situation.

Over the last 10 years, the Waste Industry Safety and Health (WISH) forum states that 20 people have died after being accidentally thrown into trucks by rubbish collectors.

Manufacturer Total Waste Solutions (TWS) has come up with a more reliable solution by creating what it claims is the world’s first “human detector”.

The device, which fits on to the outside of an industrial bin, has been designed to give workers an extra layer of protection against unwittingly emptying bins with people inside.

Great idea, and one that will hopefully reduce or eliminate the dreadful toll of bodies in bins. All that is needed now is for this to be rolled out to all operators across the UK and elsewhere.