Lithium battery ignites garbage truck fire in western Sydney
Video has captured a blaze caused by a lithium battery in the back of a garbage truck, the fourth sparked from wrongly dumped waste in four weeks in the same council area. Watch the video.
NSW
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A council in Sydney’s west is urging residents to dispose of hazardous materials responsibly after four garbage truck fires in a month.
The vision, released by the City of Canterbury Bankstown, shows a lithium battery discarded in a recycling bin, causing a fire in a truck at a Lakemba apartment block on October 2.
The driver had to transport the burning load for seven minutes to a safe location, where Fire and Rescue NSW extinguished the flames.
Other fires were caused by a metal container with flammable liquid and a gas cylinder thrown in red bins, both of which ignited inside trucks, prompting emergency load dumps to prevent further damage.
Canterbury-Bankstown Mayor Bilal El-Hayek urged all residents to think twice about what they are putting in the bin.
“Throwing batteries and other harmful chemicals in the bin will only fuel the next emergency, putting our community and drivers at risk,” Mayor El-Hayek said.
“We’re lucky that our drivers were able to escape from these recent incidents unharmed, but I don’t want to see anyone hurt.
“Our drivers are here to serve the community and, like everyone else, they deserve to go home to their families safely.”
The council is distributing flyers to educate residents on safe disposal of chemicals and electronics, with upcoming collection events at the Campsie Administration Building.
A Chemical CleanOut Day is set for Sunday, where hazardous items can be disposed of safely, and an electronic waste collection will follow on November 11, accepting items like computers and small appliances.
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