VERY LATEST: Fire at Vehicle Recycling Plant Now Under Control

JAN 25 11:20AM

Department of Environmental Health (DEH), Cayman Islands Fire Service (CIFS) and National Roads Authority (NRA) crews worked throughout the night to bring the fire at the vehicle recycling plant under control.

            CIFS crews have made good progress to extinguish visible signs of fire. They will continue to work throughout the day with DEH and NRA colleagues to excavate and turn over mixed waste as fire fighting continues.

            A much reduced smoke plume still exists and some amount of smoke is likely to be seen from the site throughout the day as remaining deep seated fires are exposed and thoroughly doused.

            Preventing re-ignition remains a priority for CIFS and crews will continue to work tirelessly to see the incident to a full and safe resolution.

            Residents and businesses in the vicinity are advised to keep windows and doors closed as a precaution. Air conditioning units should be monitored for their effectiveness and to ensure smoke is not drawn into buildings.

            Speaking from the scene, Chief Fire Officer, Paul Walker QFSM said: “I am immensely proud of the hard work CIFS colleagues have undertaken over the past 24 hours. A very challenging fire involving mixed waste materials, difficult access, limited water supplies and variable winds is now under control. Our partners from DEH, RCIPS, NRA, HMCI, DPSC, DoE and GIS have been very supportive, which is gratefully appreciated.”

            Site operators from Island Recycling, which is where the fire is believed to have originated, have also provided great assistance to CIFS in their response to the fire.

            The main George Town Landfill site operated by DEH remains operational and was unaffected by the fire.

            Crews will continue to work throughout today to fully extinguish the fire. A further update will be provided from the scene tomorrow morning.

Once the incident has been completely resolved, a full fire investigation will be conducted by CIFS. 

FURTHER UPDATE DEH and CIFS Provide Update on Fire at Vehicle Recycling Plant – JAN 24 4:50PM

Department of Environmental Health (DEH) and Cayman Islands Fire Service (CIFS) crews are continuing to tackle a fire at the vehicle recycling plant adjacent to the George Town Landfill.

            CIFS crews from both West Bay and Central Fire Stations have now been deployed across the affected area.

The crew’s current focus is to reduce any spread of fire to other areas of the landfill site and contain the fire to full extinguishment.

             Commenting on the situation at the scene, Chief Fire Officer, Paul Walker QFSM said: “Tackling a fire at any recycling plant always has its challenges due to the combination of materials with differing combustion characteristics found at the site. This will mean the incident is likely to be a protracted one that we will be tackling over the coming few days.”

            He continued, “Changing wind directions and a long fire front have meant the need for us to change our strategy as required in order to contain the fire. Our crews are working tirelessly to bring the fire under control and to a swift end.”

            The Ministry of Health is supporting the firefighting effort and DEH has secured additional heavy equipment from the National Roads Authority to further assist in the efforts. In addition, arrangements have been made with private sector to commence the drilling of additional wells to assist with extinguishing the fire as soon as possible.

            Residents and businesses affected by the smoke plume are reminded to keep windows and doors closed until the fire has been extinguished. Properties with air conditioning units should continue to monitor their effectiveness and ensure smoke is not drawn into buildings. The Public Health Department advises the public that, if anyone is exposed to the smoke and starts to develop respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, shortness of breath), they should attend or contact a healthcare facility for assessment and management as needed.

            Officers at the Frank Sound Fire Station are providing additional coverage for the rest of Grand Cayman while their colleagues tackle the fire.

            Ongoing updates are available on the Cayman Islands Government Facebook page. Further updates will be provided from the scene as the crews continue work to contain the fire.

UPDATE: DEH and CIFS Respond to Fire at Vehicle Recycling Plant

Department of Environmental Health (DEH) and Cayman Islands Fire Service (CIFS) crews are working to resolve an incident at the vehicle recycling plant adjacent to the George Town Landfill, this morning (24 January 2020).

            CIFS crews arrived at the site at 8.32 a.m. where a deep seated fire had emerged among the vehicles.

            CIFS are working closely with DEH colleagues and plant operators to move surrounding vehicles not involved in the fire, to enable swift and effective extinguishment.

            Further assistance has been given from the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service helicopter and thermal imaging cameras to help crews pin point the deep seated fire.

            A large smoke plume can be seen in the vicinity. With current variable winds, surrounding residents and business affected by this smoke plume are advised to keep windows and doors closed.

Properties with air conditioning units should monitor their effectiveness and ensure smoke is not drawn into buildings.

            This situation is being closely monitored by all concerned agencies and further updates will be provided from the scene as the crews continue work to contain the fire.

Original story:

The George Town dump is on fire again and appears to be in the yard where scrap is placed for recycling.

By all appearances it is a serious blaze and we understand commenced around 8am this morning.

The Sports Day for pre-school students at Cayman International School, that is close to the Dump was cancelled this morning because of the smoke.

Fire services are on the site dealing with the problem.