Washington Township officials remind people not to flush latex gloves down the toilet

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Officials in Washington Township are asking people to stop flushing latex gloves down the toilet.

Many people are using the gloves currently, but disposing of them the wrong way. The problem isn’t unique to Washington Township.

Rich Amormino is the Public Works Director of Washington Township. He said latex gloves were clogging the system at a pumping station in the township. Finding disposable gloves in the system isn’t uncommon, but with more people using them they’re starting to find more.

They’re asking people to stop flushing them down the toilet.

“Please, don’t do something like that,” Amormino said. “That’s just dumb.”

Macomb County’s Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller said the problem isn’t just gloves. Anything that’s not toilet paper can cause a problem.

People are asked not to flush personal wipes, makeup wipes, baby wipes -- even if they’re marketed as flushable they can lead to a sewer backup. Don’t flush paper towel or kleenex. Only flush toilet paper.

Fortunately, in this case crews were able to remove all the gloves before the situation got out of hand.


About the Author:

Nick joined the Local 4 team in February of 2015. Prior to that he spent 6 years in Sacramento covering a long list of big stories including wildfires and earthquakes. Raised in Sterling Heights, he is no stranger to the deep history and pride Detroit has to offer.