The fire broke out in commingled dry recycling feedstock. Although the full extent of the damage is unknown, waste management firm Bywaters stressed that no-one was hurt and the materials recycling facility (MRF) plant, building and offices are all intact.
According to Bywaters, staff have since been allowed back into the building.
The firm said that there may be some delays to services for its customers, but it hopes to have normal services up and running in the next few days.
In the meantime, incoming material is being diverted to Bywaters MRF at Leyton, which has a similar capacity and usually deals with commercial and industrial waste.
Fire service
The London Fire Brigade said the blaze broke out in a unit containing “tonnes of assorted waste”, which activated two sprinkler heads.
‘Many thousands of tonnes of material that were not burned by the fire will have to be disposed of, most likely as RDF’
Bywaters spokesman
A statement from the fire service said: A small part of a recycling warehouse in Bow was damaged by fire. Five fire engines two each from Poplar and Bow fire stations and one from Plaistow fire station went to the scene in Twelvetrees Crescent, E3. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The fire service said officers were damping down the material and carrying out salvage operations to protect offices.
RDF
A spokesman for Bywaters explained that the fire meant that much of the material may have to be burnt as RDF because of the fire damage. And, he added that the Environment Agency had been supportive and that, subject to structural checks to the building, services would up and running in the next few days.
The date of the fire, May 22, also happened to be the birthday of Bywaters managing director, John Glover. Commenting on the fire, he said: Enormous thanks to everyone for pulling together and making my birthday the most exciting one yet.
MRF
Material for the 140,000 tonne-a-year capacity Lea Riverside MRF comes from a variety of sources including private companies and local authorities.
Bywaters invested 7 million in the plant, which opened in 2008. The firm claims it is the largest undercover dry recyclable MRF in London.
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