10 second recap: NYPD is composed of New York’s Finest, while FDNY is called New York’s Bravest. But what about DSNY sanitation workers, AKA New York’s Strongest? Without sanitation workers, our streets would be dirty, smelly, and the playground of rats and other critters. CITIBIN invites you to join us in celebrating NYC’s sanitation superheroes!
But first, some background.
In the late 1800s, the New York City Police Department operated a street cleaning division in charge of keeping the city's streets clean. Only they didn’t. The streets of NYC in the early 19th century were filthy and filled with refuse, horse urine, manure, and loads of mud.
In May 1881, New York Governor Alonzo B. Cornell signed a bill enacting the Department of Street Cleaning, which was led by James S. Coleman. It wasn’t until 1894, though, that the streets really started getting cleaner. Col. George E. Waring Jr. took over as commissioner and was recognized as a visionary. Waring was seen as a pioneer in things like street sweeping and recycling. He also created a uniformed force to collect trash. In 1929, the department officially became known as the Department of Sanitation.
Fun DSNY trivia: Despite being around for about 100 years, the nickname “New York’s Strongest” was only coined in the 1970s during a ballgame. The nickname stuck!
So, what does the DSNY do now? According to the New York City Department of Sanitation website, it is “the department of the government of New York City responsible for garbage collection, recycling collection, street cleaning, and snow removal.” That’s a lot of heavy lifting.
Sanitation workers are some of the hardest-working individuals in the city. There’s also something almost magical about watching them toss and whirl trash through the streets. CITIBIN Founder and CEO Liz Picarazzi finds trash-tossing videos mesmerizing. “I’m in the trash business, so I’m curious about the behind-the-scenes. Especially the bag-hurling videos!”
Speaking of bag hurling, we interviewed sanitation worker Dennis Presinal to get an idea of his workday.
We first connected with Dennis Presinal via his awesome Instagram account basurero_del_bronx. His account is humorous, but it also provides a serious look at some of the intense physical labor involved in keeping city streets clean.
DSNY training: Presinal said he’s been a sanitation worker for nearly ten years now. “There’s a lot of training that comes with working on this job. They sent us out for training at Floyd Bennett Field for two to three months,” Presinal said. “They taught us how to drive a truck and operate the mechanical broom. We sat in a classroom and watched lots of videos of a whole bunch of accidents. They wanted us to know what we signed up for.”
What he wishes he knew then: Presinal says if there’s one thing he wishes he’d have known a decade ago, was how strong you have to be to work as a sanitation worker. “I would have come to the job prepared. I would have trained.” At a certain point, Presinal got serious about working out. “I knew if I didn’t take care of myself, then this job would ruin me. I saw people retire and they have a pension, but they’re all but broken.” Presinal had back surgery and another injury. “Had my form been right, I would not have been injured.” He said that you have to have a specific technique which includes lifting properly and being careful about throwing bags in the back of the truck.
How most New Yorkers react to sanitation workers: Presinal said “People don’t see us when they’re working, they only see us when we’re not working and garbage builds up. Or when they have to drive somewhere.” He explained that some people completely understand garbage trucks holding up traffic, while others can be extremely obnoxious about waiting. For that reason, Presinal chose to work night shifts so that he wouldn’t have to deal with moody people in the morning. Interestingly enough, Presinal said more pedestrians were kind to sanitation workers than those behind the wheel. Do you know who else loves sanitation workers? Kids. Presinal said that the youngest New Yorkers are endlessly fascinated by trash and especially the garbage trucks.
Beyond his active Instagram presence, Presinal told CITIBIN he has a vision for a video series he’d like to call A Day in the Life of a Garbage Man. He references the highly viewed videos of power washing cars and buildings as a trend toward cleaning. “I have so many great ideas for a video series. I’m thinking that kids stop me on the street. And I know what people will be throwing out at tax season” (spoiler alert, it’s furniture). If you’d like to sponsor Presinal’s visions of becoming a (garbage) man on the street content creator, we have it on good authority that he’d love a video set up and help with editing and producing videos! Contact him on Instagram to start a conversation.
Speaking of Instagram, these are some of our favorite trash-related accounts on Insta:
Sebastian Mejias’s Instagram is a mix of beautiful pics shot around the city along with humor and comments. Look for his recent photos of St. Patrick’s Day, they’re absolutely gorgeous.
Lucas Romero: Romero in Argentina brings the fun to his 211k followers by dancing on (and then off and then on again) his truck while it’s still in motion, sharing cute finds (like a pink teddy bear), or showing off his snazzy soccer moves.
Curb Talk NYC does a wonderful Thank You series where they highlight some of New York’s Strongest. You can find out more here:
Sanitation Trolls: We love our trash with a heaping side order of snark, and the trolls are here for it. We particularly love this post.
Taste of Waste NYC: They’ll shame you for illegal dumping and gleefully show off heavily littered areas around the five boroughs.
Related: Bin It! All Commercial Trash in NYC Must Now Go In Bins
CITiBIN is proud to be a part of the sanitation ecosystem with our rat-proof trash enclosures. To find out more, download CITIBIN’s buyer’s guide which explains CITIBINs - and even highlights a few products by our competitors. If you need inspiration or are unsure where to begin, call us at 347.549.4121 or email us at info@citibin.com to discuss creating your own customized trash bin setup.
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