Fire crews tackle Northern Ireland tire plant blaze
ERJ staff report (BC)
Belfast, Northern Ireland – Forty firefighters have tackled a massive blaze at a tire recycling plant in County Down, reports John Mulgrew of the Belfast Telegraph.
The fire – described as "significant" – took hold at OM Tyre Recycling in Mayobridge at around 3.30pm on 21 March.
Fire crews discovered around one thousand tires were involved in the blaze, which was finally brought under control at around 8pm after strong winds fanned the flames.
A spokesman for the Northern Ireland Department of the Environment said that "[The] NI Environment Agency has been on site and is co-ordinating with the Fire Service in order to reduce the risk of pollution."
In September 2012 OM received a £120,000 confiscation order for waste offences after approximately half a million tires were found stored in bales outside the company’s licensed area. OM failed to act on an order to remove the excess tires, and a second inspection found even more bales on site.
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Belfast Telegraph story
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