Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters tackled a blaze this weekend at a waste transfer station operated by Suez in Brentford, West London.
The West London Waste Authority has since confirmed that the fire is believed to have taken place in the dry mixed recycling bay of the facility, with the hot weather believed to have “played a factor” in the blaze.
The fire service had said around 1,000 tonnes of waste was alight, while Suez says this figure was only 120 (picture: London fire brigade)
Although the London Fire Brigade initially estimated that around 1,000 tonnes of waste was destroyed in the fire, and local reports put this as high as 8,000 tonnes, the authority and Suez have both said that they have only had to take 120 tonnes out of the facility “at the highest estimate”. This has now been sent to landfill, it’s been confirmed.
Transport Avenue
The 150,000 tonne waste transfer facility on Transport Avenue is operated by Suez on behalf of the West London Waste Authority, with the waste at the site taken to the energy recovery facility that Suez operates in Bristol.
According to the London Fire Brigade, the fire produced a low level plume of smoke and residents living nearby were “advised to keep their doors and windows closed as a precaution”.
The Brigade says it was called at 2215 on Friday (August 03)and the fire was under control at 0711 and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Nobody was injured in the blaze, and operations at the facility “continued as normal” at the site the following day, the West London Waste Authority confirmed.
Below is a video which the London Fire Brigade tweeted, showing the flames as they approached the site.
Firefighters are making steady progress in getting the #Brentford recycling plant fire under control. Crews are expected to remain at the scene throughout the night https://t.co/zzR4q4vy4C © @kieranleach9 pic.twitter.com/2LZBsnAUm4
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) August 3, 2018
Previous fire
The fire came less less than two months since a separate fire at the Transport Avenue site, with more than 70 firefighters working through the night to tackle a blaze at the bulky waste building.
Speaking with letsrecycle.com, Emma Beale, managing director of the West London Waste Authority said the hot weather can play a big factor.
The Brigade says it was called at 2215 and the fire was under control at 0711 and the cause of the fire is still under investigation
“The fire service did a great job in bringing the small fire under control, and we were back up and running the next evening,” she explained.
“The last fire nearby was at a similar time of night, towards the end of the last round of hot weather we had. On both occasions the Environment Agency came and oversaw operations and were happy with the site. The sprinklers worked as needed both times. ”
Investigation
When contacted by letsrecycle.com for comment, a spokesperson for Suez added: “The fire affected three outdoor bays and, contrary to reports from the fire service, we estimate around 150 tonnes of material stored in the bays was affected by the fire. The cause of the fire is not yet known and we are investigating this.
“A fire at the site in late June occurred in the bulky waste building, this was also contained and extinguished overnight by the fire service and didn’t affect the main transfer station building.”
FIRE PREVENTION AND CONTROL CONFERENCE
7th November 2018, Willis Towers Watson, London
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