Bainbridge Island is getting slimed. And not in a funny “Ghostbusters” kind of way.

City officials said Monday that Winslow has been hit with a rash of illicit dumping in recent weeks. Someone has been leaving small plastic bags filled with an unidentified soupy mixture on top of trash receptacles across downtown, from city hall to Waterfront Park.

Officials guess that the bags are filled with liquid food waste, and the green plastic bags seem to have been intentionally left behind for wild animals. Raccoons and birds have been tearing the bags open, leaving a gooey and gross mess behind.

City spokeswoman Kellie Stickney said the illegal dumping is definitely notable for its “ick factor.” None of the bags have been found intact, which has left quite a mess for city crews to clean up.

“It has been difficult to clean up. They’ve all been ripped open by the time we found them,” Stickney said.

Stickney said the bags have been filled with a “soupy food substance.”

“We’re not sure what it is, if it’s grease or leftover soup,” she said.

The ripped-open bags have been found at trash cans at city hall, Winslow Mall and Waterfront Park.

None of the trash receptacles were full at the time of the dumping, and the bags appear to have been placed on top of the garbage bins on purpose.

Birds and animals have ripped the bags open, sending the unidentified goo spilling down the cans and onto the ground.

The city was reluctant to raise the alarm, but that’s changed since a dozen or so similar bags have been found in the past several weeks. City officials are worried about potential human health hazards, as well as water quality impacts, and are spreading the word that dumping is against city regulations.

“At first, we thought maybe this was an isolated incident,” Stickney said.

“We felt it was really time to engage the community,” she added.

Stickney said the person leaving the bags behind might have good intentions, but stressed that people should not be feeding the island’s wildlife, “and definitely not through plastic bags.”

There’s also a safety factor, as Stickney recalled the aftermath of one of the bags that had been left atop a trash bin by city hall.

“We had an incident where an operations/maintenance employee was out cleaning up and had some angry raccoons hissing at him,” she said.

The dumping incidents appear nearly identical, though one plastic bag filled with gunk was put inside a paper bag before it was left on top of a trash can.

Anyone witnessing illegal dumping can call the city’s public works department at 206-842-2016, the Spills Hotline at 360-337-5777, or email waterresources@bainbridgewa.gov.

Severe spills that pose an imminent threat to life or the environment should be reported via 911.