Council staff were assisted by firefighters, local businesses and the SES when a large pile of green waste caught fire in Emerald yesterday. A resident first reported the fire to attendants at the Emerald Transfer Station at around 3.40 pm on Wednesday 19 April.
The cause is yet to be identified but based on initial investigations it appears to be an external source, as it first started on the surface of a mulched stockpile.
Help came in the form of the local fire brigade, local businesses Simon’s Contracting, Astina Civil, Houghie Nicholson and On-Site, and the local SES crew. The fire was under control by 7.00 pm and the mulch was extinguished by about 10.30 pm.
The green waste stockpile continues to smoulder under staff supervision and will continue to go so for several days. Once the material is safe to relocate the it will be transferred to Council’s landfill facilities for disposal or reuse if possible.
The Transfer Station remains open, however green waste disposal will not be available until Saturday 23 April 2016. In the meantime, residents of the Central Highlands can use the Lochlees Landfill for free.
A big thank you to all involved!