ARIA  50074

At 9:15 p.m., a 1000 m² expanse of a 1600 m² pile of non-hazardous waste and used tyres caught fire in a cell at a non-hazardous waste landfill. A huge plume of smoke rose from the pile. The crew chief, who was making his start-of-shift rounds, saw the fire and initiated the fire procedure. Workers used heavy machinery to move inert waste (rubble) onto the burning waste. The firefighters, notified by a local resident, attacked the flames using water mixed with additive in spite of water supply difficulties. The fire was extinguished at the end of the following morning. The operator treated the fumes that continued to emanate from the waste. The area was monitored.

After the fire was completely extinguished, the operator spread 50 cm of fine sand over the entire burnt area to starve it of oxygen. An embankment was built to separate the burnt portion from the rest of the cell. A specialist firm inspected the condition of the geomembranes; they were found to be intact. The leachate drainage system under the burnt area was inspected by video camera. Firewater is now treated by a sand filter that is connected to an activated carbon filter.

Since the accident, the operator has revised its emergency procedure. The firefighters must now be called quickly and immediately in the event of fire.