Crews battle to prevent river pollution following tyre blaze in Northern Ireland

Crews battle to prevent river pollution following tyre blaze in Northern Ireland

Firefighters in Northern Ireland are battling to prevent pollution generated from a tyre yard blaze running into a nearby river.

Fire safety crews were called to the facility in Mayobridge, County Down, at around 9.50pm on Sunday (15th January). Thousands of tyres were destroyed in the blaze, which is believed to have been caused by arsonists.

Group commander John Allen revealed that officers were also required to prevent pollution from finding its way into a river nearby the blaze.

“We are alongside a river and we are very conscious that fire water run-off has the potential to go into that river and result in a major fish kill,” he said.

“As a result we are modifying out tactics accordingly and we are working in conjunction with the Environment Agency.”

A suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment must be conducted on all commercial properties in Northern Ireland, under the Fire and Rescue Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 and the Fire Safety Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010.

If the fire risk assessment is judged to have not been carried out to a suitable and sufficient extent, the Appropriate Person can face up to two years in prison or an unlimited fine.

The Environment Agency have revealed that no water pollution has so far occurred as a result of the fire.

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