Blaze at Derbyshire recycling centre
A fire broke out at a recycling plant in Stanton-by-Dale on 15th September and burned for several days.
Contractors at the site worked alongside firefighters, using diggers to move unaffected wood and reducing the amount of recycled material nearby.
Bryan Bennett, area manager, said: “Firefighters are continuing to make progress with the fire under extremely arduous conditions. We are constantly making tactical assessments of the fire and are working with all the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of the local community and the environment.”
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service advised local residents to keep their windows and doors shut wherever possible due to the amount of smoke coming from the site.
Fire teams worked closely with the Environment Agency to prevent water used to extinguish the blaze affecting local water supplies. Lee Whitehouse, major incident duty officer for the Environment Agency, said: “We have been at the Erewash Canal following reports that run off from the firewater had got into the canal and that a small number of dead fish and fish in distress had been seen. We have been using oxyjets to increase oxygen levels in the canal. We currently have six oxyjets operating along a 2.5km stretch of the canal, which will continue until oxygen levels have improved. We have also reduced the amount of water running into the canal by diverting it to a Severn Trent Water sewer.”
Man arrested on suspicion of arson at Gwent crisp factory
A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson after a fire destroyed a south Wales crisp factory.
Around 50 firefighters attended the blaze at the Real Crisps site on Crumlin’s Penyfan industrial estate at around 3am on 20th September. The fire caused extensive damage and has affected around 75% of the factory.
A spokesperson for Gwent Police said: “Fire investigators have been at the site today and have established the fire is believed to be deliberately set.”
Gwent Police have confirmed that a man has been arrested in connection with the incident.
Paul Allen, chief executive of Northern Ireland company Tayto Group said: “Our focus now is on what we can do for those staff, who are naturally concerned for their jobs. We also need to ensure minimal disruption to our customers and we are working hard to bring that about. We do have other factories and will be considering all options that are open to us. Once we have fully assessed the situation we shall be able to make further announcements.”
Environment Agency staff have also been involved in the incident and have been ensuring that local water supplies are not polluted.
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said: “Action by the fire service and Environment Agency Wales officers to set up a series of barriers around the area contained the water and prevented a potential risk to the environment. The agency believes that local rivers and streams have not been affected but it remains onsite to help with the disposal of the contaminated water and continues to monitor the situation.”
Fire at Redcar steel plant
Around 50 firefighters attended a fire at a steel-making factory in Teeside after an explosion at the works.
Around 11 fire crews were called to SSI, in Redcar at around 5am when a fire broke out at the plant and spent over an hour extinguishing the blaze.
Bosses at SSI, reported that there was “minor explosion” but that there were no casualties.
A spokesperson for the plant said: “It happened about 5am and fire crews left about 6am. Operations did not cease but more importantly nobody was injured.”
The fire is the latest in a long line of setbacks at the company.
Phil Dryden, chief executive of SSI UK, said: “Although this has been a very tough year for steel businesses across the globe, the plant has operated extremely well since the restart and this is another important milestone reached. It is a demonstration of the commitment shown by SSI UK employees and is testament to the support received from all the stakeholders involved in the rebirth of iron and steelmaking on Teesside.”
On-Site Fire Warden Training
Very effective. Makes you think about the hazards and risks – K. Taylor
Great training from Gerry in both a work and a home environment – K. Edwards
Very thought provoking and extremely relevant. Good level of information and interaction. Gerry certainly made me think of areas where I had become complacent – K. Currie
On-Site Fire Awareness and Evacuation Training
The trainer was good and shared a lot of his experiences. I found this really interesting – K. Francis
Very informative. As a new starter at work it was very useful to me – A. Haley
I particularly enjoyed the practical part of the training – L. Scott
I found the presentation really useful and the information given was easy to understand. It went into details and was explained well. The training was very relevant to me as a carer as it updated my knowledge and gave me practical skills to use in the event of a fire – A. Haughan
Contained a lot of useful information that will be relevant to me in the event of at work – K. Arkle