Whitby wheelie bin left open overnight — street group chat now at 340 messages

A wheelie bin on a Whitby cul-de-sac was left with its lid ajar from Tuesday evening until 7.10am Wednesday, prompting a group chat response that has now outlasted the actual rubbish collection by several days.

The bin, a Porirua City red-lid belonging to a mid-street address, was photographed at least four times before dawn. Screenshots were circulated with the caption 'thoughts??' and, in one case, a red arrow.

Neighbour Fenella Braithwaite, 58, told The Daily Yarn the open lid had 'set a tone' for the week. 'You leave a lid open in Whitby, you're inviting things. Rats. Possums. Teenagers. I'm not saying it's a slippery slope, but I am absolutely saying that.'

By Thursday the chat had produced 340 messages, one poll, and a subcommittee. A resident three doors down, who asked to be named only as 'Greg, but not the Greg from number 14', said he'd muted it after message 90. 'It's a bin. It's rained. Move on. But no — now we're drafting a WhatsApp code of conduct.'

Porirua City Council said wheelie-bin lid position was 'not, at this stage, a compliance matter'. A spokesperson added that residents were welcome to close a neighbour's bin themselves, 'if that's the kind of street you want to live on'.

The bin has since been emptied and closed. The group chat has moved on to a different bin.