Synthite explains why emergency siren wasn't sounded during major fire

A chemical company has explained why an emergency siren was not sounded during a blaze which sparked a huge emergency services response. A huge fire broke out at Synthite in Mold on Tuesday afternoon, with one person taken to hospital to be treated for "shock".

An emergency siren at the site is regularly heard being tested, but questions were raised locally as to why it wasn't sounded when the fire broke out. The company has now explained that "no chemicals were released" during the blaze, meaning the siren did not need to be used.

A spokesperson said: "Yesterday (Tuesday 30 April) at 2.06pm, we contacted the emergency services in response to a fire at our site on Denbigh Road, Mold. The fire was contained to a production facility and adjacent storage area.

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"No chemicals were released during or after the incident, with frequent air monitoring in place. As the incident was contained to site and no chemicals were released, there was no requirement to sound our siren.

"One employee was treated for shock and taken to hospital and released last night (Tuesday), and we are supporting them accordingly. Operations on site are paused while we wait for the all-clear from the fire service.

"We would like to thank our workforce for their swift actions to raise the alarm as quickly as possible while ensuring all site personnel were evacuated safely and all plant operations shut down." The Synthite spokesman added: “We also thank local residents for their patience and apologise for any inconvenience caused.

"A joint investigation with the fire service to understand the cause of the fire will be carried out in due course.” A stretch of the A541 road has remained closed all day some 24 hours after the alarm was raised.

Meanwhile the Health & Safety Executive today said it is aware of the incident and is making enquiries.

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