Man lives in rubbish dump for 10 years

Man lives in rubbish dump for 10 years



Staff at a rubbish dump in Berlin have discovered a man who has been

living there for 10 years.

The man, named only as Harald H, was 41 when he dug out his hideaway.

It was 3ft high and contained a mattress, shelves and a cupboard, the

Berliner Zeitung newspaper reports.

Harald H reportedly spent most of the day sleeping, then set out at night

to search the dump for food, which he warmed over candles. It’s thought he

got water from a tank that fed the staff showers

Lutz Paetzold, who is in charge of the site, told the paper: “In all these

years, we never noticed him.”

Harald H was only found because he set off some fireworks to attract

attention to himself.

Mr Paetzold said the hideaway was near a recently established truck route

and he probably decided to give up his home because he felt disturbed by

the noise.

Witnesses say Harald H emerged looking somewhat pale but appeared to be in

good health.

Social services authorities are now looking after him. The hole in which

he had been living has already been filled with rubbish.

Story filed: 11:59 Tuesday 22nd July 2003