Dog attack prompts Postal Service to stop delivery in Springfield neighborhood

A postal carrier was attacked by five dogs.

April 24, 2012|by Jay Scherder, KY3 News | jscherder@ky3.com

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The United States Postal Service is putting the bite on mail service. It has nothing to do with postal agency cuts but unrestrained canines.

Nationwide, Springfield ranks 23rd when it comes to dog attacks on postal workers. They average about 12 dog attacks a year. Because of a handful of dogs, a neighborhood near Kearney Street at Glenstone Avenue is no longer getting mail delivered to their homes.

"I get quite a bit of mail. I sent out a lot of mail. I pay all my bills manually," said Todd Magness.

For the past few weeks, Magness says his mailbox has been empty.

"They said we would be receiving a letter, and that our services have been suspended," he said.

Magness is one of more than 40 addresses affected by the suspension.

Mary Mitchell lives on Turner Street. She says the mail suspension is causing problems for her family. She has guardianship of her 8-year-old great granddaughter. Her medication comes through the mail. She hasn't received any of that medication in nearly two weeks.

The reason for the suspension of service is dogs.

"The carrier was attacked by five dogs," said Springfield Postmaster Bill Brayman.

"It's kind of hard not to take it personally. It seemed like, for one bad area in the neighborhood, they took it out on all of us," said Magness.

The Postal Service says they can't pinpoint the owners of the dogs and had no choice but to protect its workers.

"So the policy is, if there is a vicious dog or a dog that projects itself to be vicious, we intervene and stop delivery to the address or addresses that that dog travels to," said Postmaster Brayman.

In a letter from the Postal Service, residents in the area of Turner now have to put up a mailbox near the street. If they don't, they will either have to pick up their mail from the Griesemer Annex or start renting a PO Box.

"I can't even begin to tell you the frustration. When you have a service like this, you take it for granted," said Magness.

Many of the homes in the area are low income. Not everyone owns his or her home; some rent. It will be up to the landlord in that case to provide a mailbox. However, legally, a landlord doesn't have to do so. That's another worry from residents here. Many are on fixed incomes and say they can't afford to put up a mailbox.

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