A contractor with the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) took down a small fire in the Central Subregion Landfill’s green waste pile.
Crews were on the scene Tuesday afternoon.
“There is no risk of spread and no impact on the landfill’s regular operations at this time,” said General Manager of Engineering and Environmental Services Kevin Paterson.
“Our contractor GFL did an excellent job on site of immediately responding and keeping it confined to the ground green waste pile.”
RDEK officials said GFL workers peeled off layers of the pile to find and snuff out any hot spots.
The RDEK believes the fire was an instance of spontaneous combustion caused by the combination of decomposing plant matter and recent high temperatures.
“While rare, these kinds of events do happen. We have a site plan and emergency procedures in place and today is a good example of how those plans can help isolate incidents and ensure quick and efficient response,” said Paterson.
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