Sometimes, we must come up with creative solutions for everyday problems. That’s what Bruce Kerr, a resident of Queensland, Australia, decided to do after people refused to stop parking in the driveway of his IT company, Kerr Solutions. In an interview with Zarisha Bradley for A Current Affair, Bruce explains that people just won’t stop parking in his spot, even though there are other spaces available. “Quite often, there are parks (parking spots) sitting there available, but those little numpties want to pull into here.”
After reaching out to the city council and sending license plate numbers to the police, Bruce said nothing changed. So, he took matters into his own hoses. “That’s when we started the waterworks,” he said, explaining them as “a whole heap of individual jets” that he has rigged to go off when he sees fit.
Once people illegally park in the spot and step out, they get heavily doused with water from the sprinkler system. And it doesn’t even take much effort. Bruce continues, “From all the cameras we’ve got, we’re pretty quickly alerted when someone has parked there. So, we flick a switch. We don’t even have to leave our desks to do so.”
It’s not limited to illegal cars. Bruce is also not a fan of litterbugs and describes one woman he saw throwing trash on the ground. “Ten seconds later, she happened to be having a ciggy underneath our irrigation system, and I found a switch.”
It’s not like he doesn’t warn them. With signs on the chain-link fence like “Parking or stopping here is illegal” and “Caution: Automatic sprinkler in use,” he couldn’t possibly be more clear. No one is safe, not even delivery drivers. And if they don’t leave after the first splash, they often get a second one.
Even more impressive, Bruce is planning on increasing the water pressure and has upgraded the system “to galvanized steel.” And if that’s not enough of a deterrent, he started posting videos of the “sprayees,” which he says went viral in 48 hours on a TikTok post entitled “Block the gate, meet your fate.”
Comments on Reddit are nearly all in favor of Bruce, loving the instant karma of it all. On the thread “Aussie Guy Turns His Driveway Into a No Parking Splash Zone,” thousands chimed in, extremely impressed by the whole operation. “I think the owner found a loophole in protecting his property without being able to get in trouble for setting a ‘booby-trap.’ Owner’s a legend.”
One commenter simply doesn’t understand the logic of illegally parking: “So silly to me, because I drive a lot for work stuff. I’d far rather take the established spot on the road rather than backing into traffic.”
This comment simplified it to two kinds of people in the world: “There’s really only two kinds of people. Those who act in a manner that is best for all, and those that act in a manner that’s best for themselves. Punishment and shame are the only limiting factors to the second category’s selfishness.”
And another Redditor even had an extra suggestion: “Just needs a sign: ‘Irrigation water is untreated sewage; in case of skin contact, wash immediately.’”
This article originally appeared in March
