COUNCIL chiefs at Warrington have warned residents to check what they can and can’t recycle after a fire in a bin lorry thought to have been caused by a battery left in a blue recycling bin.
The fire was early in the morning on April 19 at the junction of Cherry Tree Avenue and Cherry Lane, Lymm and was soon extinguished by firefighters.
But subsequent investigations have revealed the blaze was probably caused by a camping lamp battery which sparked after contact with the metal on the lorry floor.
Fortunately it was very early in the round so the lorry wasn’t full of flammable material. The recycling team noticed the smoke and immediately called Cheshire Fire and Rescue.
David Boyer, assistant director, transport and environment said: “Luckily nobody was hurt in this incident, thanks to the quick thinking of our waste team and the work of Cheshire Fire and Rescue.
“This could also have cost council taxpayers more than £130,000 to replace a vehicle if the damage had been more significant.
“We would urge people to make sure they recycle batteries correctly and only put the correct items in the blue recycling bins.”
All Warrington’s community eecycling centres will accept batteries for recycling and some libraries have battery collection boxes, as do shops that sell batteries.
For more details on what can be recycled in which bin see:
https://www.warrington.gov.uk/info/201079/bins_recycling_and_waste/2216/which_bin
Firefighters hosing down after the blaze
Bin lorry blaze caused by discarded battery
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