At around 5 pm in a recyclable metal materials recovery company that was closed for the weekend, on a very hot day, a fire broke out on a 600 t pile of scrap metal waiting to be shredded. The alert was raised by a passer-by and the company director went to the site immediately. A large amount of smoke was released into the air. Traffic on RD 47 was diverted, 34 residents from 2 neighbouring hamlets were evacuated and 5 other people had to stay in their homes. Firefighters brought the fire under control using 10 nozzles supplied by a 800 m³ water reserve, assisted by 2 of the company’s crane drivers who removed the unaffected scrap in order to limit the spread of fire. The fire extinguishing water estimated at 600 m³ was collected on site in a 2,000 m³ basin. After analyses (BOD, COD, SS, hydrocarbons, heavy metals and PCB) it was discharged into the natural environment under controlled flow a few days later. The fire was extinguished at 10.30 pm and the firefighters set up site monitoring; at around 3 am a rekindle was quickly contained. The emergency services intervention ended at 5.30 am. Examination of the site surveillance camera’s recording showed that the fire started at 4.35 pm (a small amount of smoke at the top of the pile). According to the operator, heating of flammable materials following a magnifying glass effect by the windows of vehicle carcasses could have caused the fire. This scenario listed in the safety report had not been retained as a major scenario. Following the accident, the operator planned better regulation of the flow of materials to be shredded to limit the volume stored, more frequent inspection of high-risk piles and reinforcement of staff safety awareness training.