Firefighters are advising recycling plants on how to store rubbish to prevent fires. It comes just two weeks after the biggest fire the West Midlands has ever seen. A Chinese lantern landed on thousands of tonnes of rubbish at a centre in Smethwick.
The owners of the Jayplas recycling plant in Smethwick, which a fortnight ago was almost completely destroyed by fire, has praised the emergency services for their work.
Ten thousand tonnes of recycled supermarket packaging went up in flames when a lit sky lantern floated onto the site, causing what West Midlands Fire service has described as the largest blaze they've ever tackled.
In a statement today the company said:
Northamptonshire's Arson Task Force is warning local residents about floating lanterns following the fire at a Smethwick recycling plant.
Around 50,000 tonnes of plastic recycling material and a factory is on fire in Smethwick.