The complex fire at the Reston Waste Management site took days to fully extinguish and had a significant impact on local communities
London Fire Brigade (LFB) were called to respond to a blaze at the Reston Waste Management site on Weir Road, Wimbledon on the evening of Saturday 7 September where a large pile of building waste was on fire inside a single-storey building.
Whilst the 40 firefighters and six fire engines brought the blaze under control in around nine hours, it required several days of effort to fully extinguish. In a statement from LFB, Borough Commander for Merton, Steven Vydelingum, said: "We have had firefighters at the scene for four days and working through the nights to extinguish this complex fire.
"There were multiple deep-seated pockets of fires situated within around 6,000 cubic metres of waste. Crews continuously turned over the waste and dampened it down whilst also working closely with the site operators to remove it to a separate site. This enabled firefighters to reach all of the hotspots.
The transfer of waste was completed on Wednesday 11 September and the fire was fully extinguished later that day.
Throughout this time, LFB scientific advisors monitored air quality and liaised with Wandsworth Council, Merton Council, the UK Health Security Agency, and the Environment Agency, as local residents were advised to keep doors and windows closed.
The large quantities of smoke emanating from the fire also led to several local schools being closed for safety reasons.
Wandsworth Council said it had asked the following schools to close as a precaution: Earlsfield Primary School, Beatrix Potter School, Garratt Park School, Chelsea Hall School, Tram House, Siward Road SEND Inclusion Base, as well as Jumping Beans Garratt Park Playgroup.
The schools did reopen briefly on Wednesday morning, but council officials requested that children be sent home again due to concerns over air quality. As reported by the BBC, a council spokesperson confirmed: "We have been in contact with head teachers since early this morning and are working to support their pupils and parents."
Once the fire was extinguished, firefighters remained on site to ensure there were no further hotspots. LFB have since confirmed that the cause of the fire has been recorded as undetermined.