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ATTLEBORO - When officials lowered the water level of Mechanics Pond in anticipation of Tropical Storm Hanna, one local resident jumped at the chance to pull more junk from the water.

Armed with a canoe and a garden rake, Steve Toellner pulled four tires, a 50-gallon drum and an orange and white traffic barrier out of the pond on Friday.

Toellner, whose Berwick Road house overlooks the pond, has been pulling stuff out of the water for the past two years, admitting that he does so for partly selfish reasons.

"Looking out and seeing the stuff kind of irritates me," he said. "If I pull it out, I don't have to look at it anymore."

When he saw the water level had been lowered on Friday, Toellner said he knew it was a good time to go fishing for debris. "When they lower it, I have a good view of the stuff," he said.

Although the job may be a messy one, Toellner said he'll keep heading out their and hauling in the trash.