Driver fears the worst as he sees plume of smoke coming from Chullora recycling centre
A MOTORIST driving past the scene of a massive fire at Chullora said he thought a plane had crashed when he saw a thick plume of smoke this morning.
The Express
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- Chullora fire: Massive blaze rips through recycling centre
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A MOTORIST driving past the scene of a massive fire at Chullora, said he thought a plane had crashed.
James Dixon was driving from Menai when he saw a thick plume of smoke.
“I thought ‘that is Bankstown Airport, a small plane must have crashed’, but as I came up passed Bankstown I came down and was told it was a recycling factory,” Mr Dixon said.
About 100 firefighters were on scene at the massive blaze.
They have now turned to a high-tech solution to the fire at Suez Resource Recovery Park, a facility across the road from RSPCA Yagoona in Muir Rd, Chullora.
A robot has been brought to help contain the fire.
With earlier fears LPG cylinders could explode and with part of the roof already collapsed sending in the robot provides a low-risk alternative to sending firefighters into the building.
Earlier, thick black smoke could be seen billowing hundreds of metres into the air above the recycling centre.
Warehouse buildings next to the fire could be seen smouldering as firefighters from 24 units desperately tried to contain the blaze.
All staff have been accounted for and the fire is believed to have started in the paper and plastic section of the recovery centre facility about 9.20am this morning.
BlueScope Steel Service Centre about 200m from the recovery plant, was forced to evacuate their employees when they saw the smoke.
The roof of the centre has collapsed under the intense heat, but a Fire and Rescue spokeswoman said it had been contained to the building.
A construction union representative, who did not want to be named, said he entered the recovery centre to check on welfare of his members and found the paper and plastic piles on fire.
He said everyone was safe.
Ausgrid are also on site to assist firefighters and Bankstown and Sydney airports have been notified.
Superintendent Ian Krimmer from Fire and Rescue NSW said there were fears for some LP gas cylinders which were located on the site.
“It is a large factory complex used for recycling material, it is full of carpets, plastics and paper, it measures 120m by 70m, so it is quite a large complex,” he said.
He said fire crews were working to cool the cylinders.
“At this stage we have responded around 100 firefighters from 20 surrounding stations. We have a number of ladder trucks at work and hose lines,” he said.
“We have evacuated a number of surrounding residents and factories in this particular complex,” he said.
Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus get in closer to fight the blaze.
Mr Krimmers said crews were stationed around the building and were measuring the toxicity of the smoke.
Meanwhile the NSW EPA has sent officers to the site to monitor the Cooks River which runs past the inferno.
Such was the ferocity of the blaze that massive plumes of smoke could be seen across the city, as far as 25km away.
The cause of the fire is not yet known.
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