THE US Postal Service has caused concern among customers after about 200 packages were dumped in the middle of a Florida road.
While the agency did admit to their mistake, they didn’t explain how such a mess could have happened.
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Milagros Rivera and her friends were driving down the road in Fort Myers, Florida – a little over a two hour’s drive northwest of Fort Lauderdale – when they came close to hitting a large crate.
Rivera, who called it in to 911, told local CBS affiliate WINK, that there were “probably more than 200 packages all over the floor.”
“Had someone been going the 50 miles an hour or higher…they just would have hit it head-on, and someone could have lost a life,” she added.
The scattered packages were found around 1 a.m., but had it happened during rush hour, it could have been even more dangerous for those driving through Lee County.
USPS customer Jamie Wetzel, who was visiting the area, is now concerned that his packages won’t get to their destination.
“I just mailed some stuff back home. I hope it got there, and I hope that’s not what it was,” said Wetzel, who was visiting Lee County.
Wetzel was also worried about other customers who could have shipped valuables.
“There could have been some valuable items. I hope that people, they get it back to where it’s supposed to be,” he said.
USPS’ FRUSTRATING RESPONSE
The USPS said it “takes seriously the security and sanctity of the mail,” in a statement to the local outlet.
The agency explained what happened and how it cleaned up the mess, but didn’t go into detail about how such a thing could have occurred.
“A postal truck inadvertently dropped some of its load along a local roadway in Lee County.
“Postal officials, with the help of local law enforcement, retrieved all packages, which have since been transported to their intended destinations,” the USPS said.
The agency also shared its regrets for the debacle.
“We regret any inconvenience this incident may have caused,” it said.
It’s still unclear if any packages were damaged or if USPS would replace any damaged items.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to the USPS for comment.
USPS mess-ups
The United States Postal Service is facing customer complaints as the mail agency struggles to stay afloat admit workforce cuts and financial loss.
USPS OVERHAUL
The USPS began rolling out some major changes this month as the agency faces a tough and uncertain future.
Over the next ten years, the USPS will save at least $36 billion “through reductions in transportation, mail and package processing and real estate costs,” the agency said.
Service standards for mail are affected by this overhaul, which could cause longer delivery times for some customers.
Most first-class mail won’t be impacted, but 14% will be adjusted to a faster standard and 11% will be adjusted to a slower standard.
Rural customers will be specifically impacted by some of these changes.
USPS workers will be allowed to leave facilities earlier to travel longer distances to deliver packages.
This will help improve postal reliability for people in rural areas.
But these customers will also have to wait longer for mail they dropped off to be sent because the USPS plans to end most afternoon mail pickups at post offices far from regional hubs.