The blaze at the facility at Great Blakenham, near Ipswich, was attended by over 40 fire-fighters and two ambulance crews (see letsrecycle.com story).
” Everyone at the MRF played a vital role in ensuring the building was evacuated, alarms raised and the emergency services called. “
– Alan Munson, Viridor
An inspection of the MRF after the fire revealed “major smoke damage” to the paper shed, as well as “widespread water damage from the facility's sprinkler system. Operators Viridor Waste Management said contractors had been called out immediately to repair the damage and minimise down-time.
During the incident itself, several members of staff at the MRF – including Karl Finch, Danny Finch, Trevor Garrod, Fred Walton and Lawrence Young – were treated for smoke inhalation, but none required hospital treatment according to the waste firm, which praised their workers for their swift actions as news of the fire spread around the site.
Viridor paid particular tribute to the efforts of education officer Cheryl Turner and Sue Gibbs of the Suffolk Recycling Consortium for ensuring that staff were all safe and accounted for.
Evacuated
Alan Munson, operations manager for the Eastern Region, who was also one of those treated for smoke inhalation, said: “Without a doubt, things could have been much worse had the team not acted as quickly as they did. Everyone at the MRF played a vital role in ensuring the building was evacuated, alarms raised and the emergency services called as well as fighting the fire itself until the fire service arrived.”
“We owe a huge thanks to our contractors; Grosvenor Waste Management, CD Engineering, Sycorax Electrical, Eastern Vulcanising Services and Securitt for their hard work over the last seven days to get the plant up and running again, and of course to the emergency services for their vital help on the day of the fire,” Mr Munson added.
Operational staff at the MRF are now working extra hours to catch up with the backlog of recyclable material delivered by local authorities within the Suffolk Recycling Consortium.
Register for free to comment