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A garbage truck caught fire in a Sydney suburb after picking up a lithium battery

Posted on by L. Dreeye
A garbage truck caught fire in a Sydney suburb after picking up a lithium battery

Published footage shows a fire caused by a lithium battery in the back of a garbage truck. A fourth fire was caused by improperly disposed waste this month in the same Sydney council area.

A garbage truck spent several minutes carrying its burning load through Sydney’s south-west after picking up a battery that had been dumped in a bin at a Lakemba apartment block on October 2.

A camera inside the truck’s storage facility showed the fire’s intensity increasing as the truck traveled through residential streets for seven minutes at speeds of up to 60 kilometers.

Video surveillance from the back of a garbage truck driving down a suburban street.

Moments before the fire started, a garbage truck can be seen collecting trash cans on a residential street. (Delivered by: Canterbury-Bankstown Council.)

Smoke can be seen billowing from the truck throughout the trip before it reaches the dead end where the engulfed cargo was dumped.

A Fire and Rescue NSW spokesman confirmed crews were dispatched to Parry Park on Punchbowl Road to tackle a fire where a rechargeable battery had become out of control.

Canterbury-Bankstown Mayor Bilal El-Hayek said the driver was lucky to escape injury.

“Throwing batteries and other harmful chemicals in the trash will only worsen the next emergency, putting our community and drivers at risk,” he said.

“I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

CCTV footage from the back of a garbage truck showing a bucket on fire and smoke billowing out into the street.

The truck fire is one of four in the Canterbury-Bankstown council area this month. (Delivered by: Canterbury-Bankstown Council.)

The council said another driver had a narrow escape in a separate incident after a gas cylinder was thrown into a red household waste bin.

It was only discovered when the driver heard an explosion and was able to unload a load of smoldering debris.

In another incident, a fire started after a garbage truck emptied a container that contained a metal container full of flammable liquid.

The driver quickly unloaded the cargo.

Canterbury-Bankstown Council said it was distributing pamphlets on streets where it believed hazardous items were coming from, in the hope that the information would help the community dispose of chemicals and electrical items safely.