South Kesteven bin lorry blaze sparked by battery - council

Seven tonnes of burning rubbish had to be dumped from a bin lorry onto a road after it had set alight due to a discarded battery, a council has said.

A refuse crew was forced to empty the blazing contents of the truck in Ingoldsby, Lincolnshire, on Monday, South Kesteven District Council said.

No-one was harmed, but the fire service had to be called to deal with the blaze, according to a spokesperson.

A disposable vape or small battery item may have caused the fire, they added.

People in South Kesteven have since been warned by the council to be careful how they dispose of items containing batteries.

Councillor Mark Whittington, cabinet member for waste, said: "Anything with a battery inside can cause a fire if you put it in the bin.

"In this instance, the fire was spotted quickly, and the correct action taken. The driver safely ejected seven tonnes of recycling waste, waste that unfortunately cannot now go for recycling.

"Please help keep bin crews and other refuse workers safe by disposing of them properly," he added.

The authority said anything with batteries inside, or with a plug, should not go in household bins and needed to be recycled separately.

Waste was compacted several times on its journey and just one battery could create a spark capable of setting the whole load alight, a council spokesperson added.

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