Smethwick Fire: Massive Blaze At Recycling Plant

A blaze at a plastic recycling factory, described by firefighters as one of the biggest ever seen in the West Midlands, is believed to have been started by a single Chinese lantern.

At its height, some 200 firefighters were tackling the blaze at the site in Smethwick, on the outskirts of Birmingham.

An estimated 10,000 tonnes of recycling material and a factory unit were set alight, and crews battled to stop the flames spreading to neighbouring businesses.

The fire was described as one of the biggest ever seen in the West Midlands

Vij Randeniya, chief fire officer at West Midlands Fire Service, told Sky News: "We believe a Chinese lantern dropped onto some bales of plastic and, looking at CCTV, it would appear that was the cause.

"Chinese lanterns have been involved in a number of incidents and firefighters have been campaigning for there to be better controls.

Around 200 firefighters were called to the blaze in Smethwick

"They look really nice but they do pose a danger."

The Chief Fire Officers' Association said it was calling for "an urgent review" into the use of the floating paper lanterns.

Two firefighters were taken to hospital and 11 more were treated at the scene by paramedics, although their injuries are thought to be minor.

Mr Randeniya said firefighters were tackling "one of the largest fires we've experienced", with intense heat released from the burning plastics.

"These are difficult fires to extinguish and we anticipate being here for a number of days," he said.

One of the problems facing firefighters is having to extinguish molten pools of melted plastic.

A spokesman for Birmingham International Airport said there was no disruption to flights, despite a plume of thick black smoke more than 1,800m high that could be seen from 30 miles away.

A number of roads around the recycling plant were closed but the nearby M5 motorway remained open.

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