Yahoo News Workers escape unhurt after Burslem recycling plant blast
Workers escaped unhurt after a battery sparked an explosion at a Stoke-on-Trent recycling plant. They were forced to evacuate as a precaution after the blast at Brown Recycling in Burslem this morning (July 10).
Six engines and the aerial ladder platform were sent to the scene in Sneyd Hill at around 11am to bring the blaze under control. A cordon was also put in place.
Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed a 'full inspection into the cause is underway' but it is believed to have been caused accidentally by a lithium-ion battery that had gone through a shredder.
READ: Live: Five fire engines scrambled to Stoke-on-Trent business Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service is on Sneyd Hill
READ: Warning as explosion at Burslem recycling plant sends flames two metres into sky Bosses at Brown Recycling are urging people to dispose of batteries correctly
Group manager James Green said: “Since the fire began this morning, we’ve managed to get it under control and have since scaled back our attendance at the scene. While an investigation into the cause of the fire is being carried out, I want to advise people that disposing of batteries inappropriately can not only cause damage to the environment but also increases the risk of fires occurring.
“Incidents such as this present a real challenge to the waste industry and we would urge local businesses and households to ensure that batteries are separated from general waste and disposed of appropriately via one of the many battery recycling schemes in operation.
“The energy density of batteries has increased significantly in recent years as the technology has developed and even the smallest battery has the potential to cause a serious fire.”
A Brown Recycling spokesman said: "The fire was caused by a rogue lithium battery exploding when it went into the waste shredder in the RDF (refuse derived fuel) plant at our Burslem site. As soon as the battery hit the shredder it exploded and started the fire. In a waste management environment this will quickly take hold and we had two metre high flames within minutes.
"We stress with our commercial customers that lithium-ion batteries, and indeed all batteries, should always be disposed of separately as they are such a fire hazard. We supply dedicated battery disposal bins to help ensure they don’t get mixed in with dry waste collections so such incidents are avoided. These are rare incidents but they do cause major disruption when they occur.
"As a safety focused and compliant business, we take the dangers of fire at our waste sites extremely seriously. We have fire detection and fire suppression systems, extinguishers, and fire marshals all in place. But in the event of a fire of this scale we immediately evacuate our people for their safety and call the fire service who responded very promptly.
"We had five engines on site from Burslem, Hanley, Longton, Cheadle and Stone on site to deal with the blaze which they did quickly and efficiently. They appreciate the challenges fires caused by batteries in waste can cause.
"However, the whole incident would have been avoided if the battery had been disposed of properly ie not in general waste."
