Lithium batteries are likely cause of blaze
LITHIUM batteries brought to the Guernsey Recycling site by a third party was the source of a blaze which raged for hours yesterday, the group’s chairman believes.
The company’s yard behind Bulwer Avenue disposes of waste for businesses and individuals.
Chairman Alan Crowe said there was a specific procedure for disposing of lithium batteries, commonly found in laptops and mobile phones.
‘We believe it was a lithium battery from a delivery from a third party.
‘There’s a duty of care involved in disposing of waste material. There are collection bins for batteries around the island, but that’s not to say these things don’t slip through.
‘We are the professionals but everyone should be aware of what they are disposing.
‘This is the only incident we’ve had in quite some time, maybe 10 to15 years,’ he said.
It is unknown whether the batteries were subject to heat or force which caused them to combust in the bins on site.
‘We will have to have a full investigation, but we believe that batteries from a third party was probably the cause, knowing the time frame and the delivery we had come in at that time.
‘I’d just like to thank the fire service and the other services for being quick and professional in dealing with this,’ he said.
There are several different kinds of lithium batteries but some, such as those used in the recently recalled Samsung Note 7 mobile phone, can combust when broken due to the chemicals creating gas when mixed with air.
