Firefighters tackle huge blaze at Birmingham recycling plant

Dramatic drone footage, shot during the night and released by West Midlands Fire Service, shows the scale of the incident

Fire crews from across the West Midlands are tackling a huge fire at a recycling plant in Birmingham.

Thousands of tons of cardboard and paper went up in smoke at the Smurfit Kappa site in Nechells.

More than 120 firefighters and 30 fire appliances were used after emergency services responded to calls around 7:30pm on Sunday (12 June) evening.

People in the area are being urged to stay indoors and keep their windows closed, while crews work to extinguish the fire.

Area Commander Sam Burton was at the scene during the night.

She explains how when her team arrived there was "around 8,000 tons of compressed cardboard on fire".

"We will be here for some time" she added.

Firefighters are expected to remain at the site for the next couple of days.

The A47 Heartlands Parkway into Birmingham city centre was closed in both directions due to the fire, but the route into the city has now reopened.

A statement from the fire service said: "At 19:40 on Sunday 12 June, we were called to an incident on Mount Street, Nechells, Birmingham.

"This incident involves a large amount of paper and cardboard bales on fire at a warehouse.

"We currently have more than 20 fire appliances in attendance - including two aerial hydraulic platforms, multiple fire engines, a high volume water pumping unit, and one of our drones.

"Crews from stations across the West Midlands are working extremely hard to tackle the blaze using main jets.

"We are working closely with Police and Ambulance colleagues, the Environment Agency, Severn Trent Water, and on-site staff, to bring the incident to a safe conclusion.

"There are no reports of any casualties. It's expected that crews will be in attendance throughout the night."