Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews have extinguished a fire in a garbage truck at Charlestown in Newcastle.
The truck’s driver called Triple Zero (000) just before 8am today when he noticed smoke issuing from the hopper of the vehicle, stopped in a loading bay during an industrial bin run, in Hopetoun Street.
Twenty-eight firefighters and seven FRNSW trucks, including HAZMAT units, from Charlestown, Cardiff, Newcastle, Tingira Heights, and Lambton rushed to the scene and attacked the blaze with four lines of hose, as it intensified.
Emergency Evacuation
Authorities evacuated an adjacent medical centre as a precaution as they contained the fire.
The public has since been allowed to return to the building. No-one has been injured in the incident. The cause of the fire has not been identified.
FRNSW urges businesses and households to contact their local councils for advice to determine what materials are suitable for general garbage disposal, as necessary.
