A huge blaze at a recycling plant which saw 500 tonnes of paper go up in smoke is the 19th dealt with by firefighters this year so far.
Residents were warned to keep their doors and windows closed as fire broke out at Premier Waste, Walsall Road, Perry Barr yesterday.
Four pumps from West Midlands Fire Service were called to the site near the Alexander Stadium at around 3am but quickly called for support.
Within an hour 75 fire fighters and 15 fire engines were tackling the fire in the metal factory unit.
Area commander Simon Shilton said it was the latest recycling plant blaze to hit the region, incidents which he said now risk becoming “a real drain on our resources”.
In July, the fire service dealt with what it said was its largest ever blaze at a plastics plant in Smethwick – caused by a floating paper lantern – which led to £6 million of damage.
Mr Shilton described it as a “significant” and “intense” blaze.
He said: “At the height we had about 75 firefighters, with the fire itself involving a mixture of plastics and paper products.
“It created a hugely intense fire in one building. Fortunately we were able to contain it.”
He added: “At some stages the external parts of the building were glowing red, and that makes it even more challenging when we’re trying to get some assertive firefighting and trying to get inside the building.”
Premier Waste site staff used diggers to help section the remaining waste paper to allow firefighters to get at “hotspots”, Mr Shilton said.
The latest fire brings to almost 20 the number of such incidents West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service has dealt with since January, and a few hours prior to the latest blaze crews were dealing with a smaller fire at a recycling plant in Wolverhampton.
Mr Shilton said the fire service had seen “a significant increase” in the number of blazes at recycling plants this year alone.
“Recycled material is big business nowadays and there’s a lot of companies building their business based on recycled waste material,” he said.
“We have seen a significant increase in the number of incidents we’ve attended for these type of premises this year, and for us it’s a real drain on our resources.”
The cause of the fire at Premier Waste is not yet known and a manager at the site was unavailable for comment yesterday.
The Recycling Association, a trade body representing 65 companies in the recycling industry, said there was “no magic answer” to the problem.
Simon Ellin, chief executive, said there had been “an extraordinary spate” of such fires following a very dry period of weather, with seemingly no single set of causes or solutions.
