For years, Deanna Vaughan says she has seen trash strewn around her property by a group home for people with disabilities called Wraparound Services of the Hudson Valley.

"The staff obviously knew that bears would get into the trash, but they still never closed down the dumpsters at night. They always left them just wide open," said Vaughan, of Kerhonkson.

What You Need To Know


  • Deanna Vaughan says bears have been getting into the trash at her neighbor's house, a group home for adults with disabilities, spreading medical waste and other garbage around the neighborhood

  • Her dog got sick and needed surgery to remove plastic from his stomach

  • She contacted the DEC and the town of Wawarsing for help, but the problem persisted


She says on April 19, she let her dog out, and he ate a rubber glove. He needed emergency surgery to remove the trash from his abdomen. She sent Spectrum News video she filmed of what she found.

"The majority of it are vinyl gloves. It looks like flushes used for a wound wash; it looks like, not your typical syringe, but definitely medication injection syringes," said Vaughan.

Vaughan is worried about the health risks of having medical waste near her family and pets. She called the group home, asking for it to be cleaned up. She says staff members told her they were short staffed and she would have to wait.

"I have a 9-year-old daughter who has auto-immune disease," said Vaughan. "She's type one insulin dependent. I don’t need this coming into my house.”

She contacted the Town of Wawarsing for help and has yet to hear back from them. Vaughan also reached out to the Department of Environmental Conservation, who sent an officer to the facility. The officer directed staff members to clean up the trash and issued them a letter of warning. The DEC says a written warning must be issued before further action could be taken.

The day after Spectrum Newsreached out to the DEC, Vaughan says she saw DEC officials visit the facility and sent us video of what she says are staff members clearing bags of trash from a nearby field. We contacted the DEC to find out what happened. They said they conducted a follow-up visit to the property on May 22, with the Town of Wawarsing supervisor, the highway department, and the facility’s CEO and operator.

According to the DEC, the facility cleaned up the trash during their visit and installed bear-proofing mechanisms on their dumpsters. The DEC will follow-up at the facility to check for compliance.

"I feel like he should have got a fine from the DEC," said Vaughan. "I feel like the Town of Wawarsing should be giving them a fine."

Spectrum News reached out to the owner of the facility, Gerry Dohrenwend, who said he felt terrible about the dog's injuries. He also says he did not know there had been more incidents involving bears in their trash, but that he will look into the matter. He says his insurance will pay for Vaughan's veterinarian fees.