Child pricked by syringe in playground where eight needles discovered faces months of tests
Updated
An eight-year-old will undergo months of blood tests, including a screening for HIV, after being pricked by a needle while playing in a playground in Esperance on Western Australia's south coast.
Authorities immediately shut the park and raked the playground collecting eight syringes, with all sand at the playground to now be replaced.
The child was playing with a friend on Saturday when he was pricked.
The curious boy grabbed one of several discarded black plastic bags containing the needles at Dixon Park playground.
"He had a little mark on his finger, he actually touched the needle not knowing what it was," the boy's father said.
"He said it pricked him and a little bit of blood came out so it definitely got the poor little fella."
'Horrifying' wait for blood tests
The father searched the park after being told by his son what had happened and found several bags containing discarded loose needles.
He said it was then the panic kicked in.
"The main thing was to get him down to the hospital and get these bloods sent away so we know what we're dealing with and go through that horrifying wait," he said.
The father said the hospital had fast-tracked the blood tests for diseases and infection, but the family will have to wait for the other test results.
"There will be subsequent tests at two months and then further on from there [for] the more dangerous ones like HIV, hepatitis C, hepatitis B … this is going to be ongoing," he said.
The father is furious at the perpetrators who abandoned the needles in the playground.
"Why a kids' park, of all places to do that, especially this park where my kids and the neighbourhood kids are constantly playing. What sort of animal does that?" he said.
Search uncovers eight syringes, faeces on equipment
Esperance Shire officers raked over the ground as soon as they were notified and collected eight needles, some still in their packaging.
Shire chief executive officer Matthew Scott said an extensive clean-up would be required, including on play equipment which was covered in faeces.
"We actually have to replace all the sand, so it's all new sand," Mr Scott said.
"Then we've got to get the pressure cleaners to come in and actually take off the faeces that's been smothered on all the play equipment."
Reward offered for information
Mr Scott said the Shire was outraged by the incident and was offering a reward for information that leads to a conviction of the people responsible.
"I'm more than prepared to put out a reward so that we can get some information and hopefully we can get this sorted out fairly quickly," Mr Scott said.
"This is just a horrible experience for the whole community and we just can't accept it."
First posted
