On Monday (18 November 2024), six fire engines and around 40 firefighters tackled a fire at the waste recycling plant on Devon Street.
The LFB said that crews discovered a developing fire in approximately 300 tonnes of waste within a single-storey tipping hall after the fire was reported at 12:31pm.
Around 100 people had already evacuated the site and there have been no reported injuries. The fire was brought under control at 5:46pm thanks to crews mobilised from New Cross, Old Kent Road, Peckham and Deptford.
Although the fire was contained within the building, people in the area were advised to keep their windows and doors shut due to possible smoke travel.
Incident commander Tom Ronan issued a statement: “Firefighters worked hard to extinguish deep-seated pockets of fire within a pile of waste. We also worked closely with the site operator to put out the blaze with staff using shovel loaders to remove piles of recycling.
“Firefighters remained on the scene into the evening to fully extinguish the fire.”
Fire risk of lithium-ion batteries
A spokesperson for the LFB reminded the public that lithium-ion batteries and electricals with hidden lithium-ion batteries should not be placed in the same bins as your regular rubbish or recycling.
In August this year, Veolia reported that it was seeing an average of one preventable fire a day from residents putting dangerous items in residual waste bins.
The spokesperson continued: “Although lithium-ion battery products that have been built to a poor standard are a higher fire risk, any battery is at risk of exploding and catching fire if it has been crushed or becomes damaged. Lithium-ion battery fires can be ferocious and can spread in seconds.
“Fires that we attend at sites like recycling centres and scrap yards can be very time consuming for our firefighters and often require a high level of resources to put the fire out. We’ve also seen the detrimental environmental and societal impact these fires can have on local communities.”
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