Fridge 'mountain' fire investigated

Fridge 'mountain' fire investigated

The smoke from the fire is being analysed by experts

An investigation is under way into the environmental damage caused by a major fire at a fridge storage depot in Greater Manchester.

The fire started in the early hours of Thursday at Britannia Import Export on Stock Lane, Chadderton.

The burning fridge mountain produced 100-foot-high flames and toxic fumes and it is feared chemicals may have leaked into nearby rivers and streams.

Residents were urged to stay indoors and keep their windows and doors shut, because of the volume of smoke.

Firefighters were called to the scene, at about 0100 BST.

Digger trucks have been called in to break up the burning fridges and damp down the fire.

Firefighters are expected to be at the scene all day

The Environment Agency in Greater Manchester has also been called in as part of the cleanup operation, and is assessing impact on rivers around the site.

Helen Smith, of the agency, said: "Fires need water to put them out obviously and it is a question of where the water goes.

"We are looking at the receiving water course to see if there is any immediate impact - or long term impact.

"The stream itself is quite small, but it does go into a larger brook so that does afford some dilution to any pollutants which may have got into the water.

"These fridge sites are always extremely difficult to deal with and we will be looking to see if there are any lessons learnt for the rest of the sites in Greater Manchester."

'Very worrying'

An investigation is under way into the cause of the fire, but Divisional Officer Dave Lewis said that it is likely to have been caused by children.

He said: "The security guard chased off some young children earlier in the evening.

"We suspect that the fire was caused by children playing with matches.

"But this has caused a major impact on the local community, there are environmental issues, and tying up 70 firefighters in a preventable fire - if that is the case it is very worrying."

Fire officers were expected to be damping down the fire at the yard throughout Friday.