Deliveries continued as normal at the 100,000 tonne capacity plant in Gas Road, Sittingbourne, where firefighters were alerted to a blaze at 8.45am on Sunday.
Kent Fire & Rescue Service managed to put the fire out at 10am this morning, with one appliance now on standby as firefighters prepare to leave the scene.
Thick acrid smoke produced by the fire had also dissipated by midday, allaying fears the incident would disrupt surrounding businesses.
Medway Fire Station manager and Incident commander Jim Ramsden told letsrecycle.com the fire service was working closely with SWEEEP, the Environment Agency and loss adjustors to establish what had happened.
He said: At present we are in the final throes of the operation, damping the site down and handing back control to the company.
In the local area we gave warning messages to the community and to the local authority to keep all doors and windows closed where possible. Those who suffer adverse effects to the smoke were advised to stay away from the area.
Firefighters were alerted to the blaze at 8.45am on Sunday (July 7). At its height between 11am and 4pm, some 60 firefighters and 11 pumping appliances were called in to tackle the flames.
Damage
SWEEEP confirmed the fire was contained to the bulk WEEE deliveries and intake area, and did not damage any other areas of the facility, including its 2 million leaded glass furnace, thought to be the first of its kind in the world, installed in late 2012.
The company processes a large amount of cathode ray tube (CRT) glass at the site, as well as small and mixed waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).
A spokesman for SWEEEP said: A fire started around 8.00am yesterday morning in our recycling facility in Sittingbourne, Kent. Our emergency evacuation procedure was activated and emergency services notified.
The fire was restricted to the waste electronics delivery area of the site and is now under control. We are initiating a full enquiry and working with the relevant agencies into the cause of the incident.
Cost
Two men were hospitalised due to smoke inhalation from the fire yesterday, but SWEEEP have confirmed that both men have returned to work. It is currently not known what the cost of the damage to the site and the loss of WEEE will be.
While the cause of the fire is yet to be established, it is understood loss adjustors have warranted an investigation.
Related Links
The fire is the second major blaze in the recycling sector in as many weeks, after plastics recycling firm Jayplas suffered a huge fire at its recycling depot in Smethwick, West Midlands last week (see letsrecycle.com story).
Register for free to comment