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Credit: WINK News Messes are piling up outside of some Southwest Florida homes. Some Cape Coral residents say they haven’t had their yard waste picked up in almost four weeks. WINK News looks into why they’re seeing those delays. Waste Pro told WINK News they’re experiencing significant disruptions in their service since employees are calling off. And, the company says, COVID-19 is to blame for why employees aren’t coming to work. Jim Lucarelli of Cape Coral had something to say about that. “They said, ‘well they’re short-handed and there’s a lot of stuff to pick up’. I said, ‘we’ve got stuff that’s been here three weeks, four weeks… and it’s still on the yard,'” said Lucarelli. Neighbors say they are fed up since the yard waste pickup is a service they still have to pay for without getting the benefits of it. “I’m not ready to rip anybody’s head off, just let me know and I’ll work with you. Like I said, I won’t put it out this week if I know you’re not coming for two weeks. I’ll keep it behind the fence,” said Dave Ambrozewicz. Residents say the piles are becoming unsightly and killing the grass beneath them. Waste Pro says it is committed to finding solutions to mitigate these disruptions. Bett Lucarelli said, “It can be every other week, just let us know so, you know, we don’t leave our stuff out there.” Lee County is also asking its customers to brace for the same possible yard waste collections delays beginning Monday. But the county says trash pickup will not be affected. “Cape Coral wants to keep their homes nice-looking. This is not it,” said Vicki Ambrozewicz. Waste Pro says it is monitoring the situation every day and is in constant communication with the City of Cape Coral and Lee County. They’re still working to find a solution. Waste Pro sent a statement to WINK News and you can read the full statement is below: “Millions of workers across the United States in all industries are taking sick days due to the omicron variant. Our solid waste employees are working hard to perform collections but are not immune to the virus. These dramatic increases in time off significantly disrupt our service schedules. Waste Pro is committed to proactively finding ways to mitigate service disruptions. Our local management is monitoring this situation daily and are regularly communication with the Lee County and Cape Coral. We appreciate your patience. The safety and service of our communities are our number one priority.” Lee County also sent a statement to WINK News ahead of possible delays: “Lee County Solid Waste is asking customers to be aware they may experience delays in pickup of some yard waste beginning Monday because the county’s contracted haulers are reporting critical staffing shortages due to COVID-19. Solid Waste customers should continue to put out their garbage, recycling and yard waste on their normally scheduled days. To help mitigate the haulers’ current staffing challenges, Lee County has asked the haulers to prioritize placing the majority of available staff on garbage collection from both residential and commercial areas. The next priority will be recycling, and then yard waste.Customers should know: If you do not have your yard waste or recycling picked up on your regularly scheduled day, there is no need to call your hauler or Solid Waste; those routes will be noted and haulers will collect on a later day. If your garbage is not collected, visit www.leegov.com/solidwaste to find your collection area and your hauler’s contact number; customers can also complete a Request For Action form to notify Solid Waste. (Garbage typically is considered waste from household kitchens, for example.) You may also experience delayed recycling service, depending on the volume of garbage curbside and available staff. If recycling is not picked up on your regularly scheduled day, contact Solid Waste. Solid Waste and the haulers are asking residents to be mindful of the amount of yard waste they place at the curb and reduce it, if possible. Solid Waste will have staff inspectors in the field to monitor the situation. Regular collections will resume as soon as collection crews are able to return to work. Lee County Solid Waste residential customers reside in unincorporated Lee County as well as the City of Bonita Springs, the Village of Estero, City of Sanibel and the Town of Fort Myers Beach. Please note: There will be no change to collection schedules on the upcoming Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, which is Monday, Jan. 17.”