The fresh round of fire that broke out at the mounds of plastic waste collected on the campus of the Brahmapuram municipal solid waste treatment plant site has put the civic authorities in a spot. The fire, the second incident in a fortnight, broke out around 9.30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Methane gas that escapes from plastic waste, which is exposed to the sun, is assumed to be the reason for the fire. Small fires break out regularly on the campus as mercury levels soar. The last two incidents went out of hand and warranted the intervention of fire-fighters, said a civic administrator. The latest fire incident occurred just when the Kochi Corporation authorities were busy preparing for their crucial meeting with a delegation from the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The civic body had come under fire for its failure to set up a leachate treatment plant there.
Opposition councillors had also turned the heat on civic authorities for what they termed as the failure to put in place disaster management measures and scientific waste management mechanism.
Six-hour operation
Alerted by the security personnel posted at Brahmapruam in the night, firefighters from various parts of the district rushed to the spot. The blaze was brought under control after an operation which lasted for around six hours. Around 50 firemen from various units took part in the operation, said one of the officials of the Fire and Rescue Services team that was involved in the operation.
Accessing the site of the accident proved to be a tough task as fire-tenders could not move easily through the track, which had turned soggy by the movement of tipper lorries transporting waste. Firemen had to climb the garbage heaps with the heavy hose in their hands to reach the spot. Water was used for dousing the fire, the official said. Though the fire was brought under control by 3 a.m., a few men stayed back and a fire-tender was put on alert at the site till afternoon.
