Fire at Spalding Household Waste and Recycling Centre prompts warning from council bosses

A blaze at Spalding tip has prompted council bosses to put out a warning.

Emergency services were called to the household waste and recycling centre in West Marsh Road, after a blaze spared by a car battery broke out in the general waste container.

The centre was forced to close for three hours while Spalding and Boston firefighters tackled the blaze, which was reported just after 11am.

Lincolnshire County Council has now issued a plea to residents to not discard batteries and electricals in bins and to recycyle them in the appropriate separate containers on site.

Coun Daniel McNally, executive member for waste and recycling at Lincolnshire County Council, explains: “Whether it goes into your bins at home, or to a Household Waste Recycling Centre, waste is compacted a number of times on its journey to its final destination, and it’s at these points where electrical items that have been disposed of incorrectly can spark and start a fire.

“This incident at Spalding is the latest in a line of fires caused by electrical items in the wrong place. We’ve seen fires in bin lorries and even fires at our contractors’ processing plants; it needs to stop.

“Putting electrical items and batteries in bins puts waste workers at risk. You’ll find recycling points for batteries and electrical items of all types and sizes at each of our household waste recycling centres. You can also recycle batteries at most supermarkets”.

If you’re in doubt about how and where you can recycle items in Lincolnshire, please visit www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/waste

Spalding Household Waste Recycling Centre is now open as normal.