Escape Hatches for Dumpster Divers

You know the saying, "If all else fails, read the instructions."

Instructions and warnings and such are all over.   Don't eat the toothpaste, dispose of properly, etc, etc, etc.   And my all time favorite that's on EVERYTHING:   "...known by the state of California to cause cancer...."    No other state knows it, just California.


So, this afternoon I drove over towards Cooper Landing to throw some trash in the "solid waste transfer site," otherwise known as "the Dumpsters."

Four doors on the dumpster that swing outward.

These dumpsters were modified a few years ago to have doors that bears can't open (hopefully), hence the label on the doors to keep them closed.   They also keep out the magpies, ravens, and eagles that have a bad habit of flying off with succulent trash and spreading it around the countryside, like avian littering.

Plain and simple.   Stick your hand behind the plate and pull on the lever to open the door.

After I finished emptying my pickup of trash, I went to close the door and saw this stenciled on the inside of the door::

See that green bar ?

I would love to know the story behind this stencil.    I wonder if someone got caught inside when all four doors closed and the borough added an escape hole and instructions?    Yes, I've seen people crawling around in the dumpsters looking for treasures. 

Look closely and you can see the bar through the hole.   You push against that (from the inside) and the door will open.   Unless it's stuck, like many of them are.

In that case, I guess you have to wait for a bear to come by and open it so you can escape.