Landfill fire under complete control |07 March 2023

• LWMA reestablishes safety of the site

The landfill fire which broke out at 11.15am on Sunday at Providence was finally under complete control yesterday afternoon, according to the public relations officer of the Seychelles Fire and Rescue Services Agency (SFRSA), Terence Arnephy.

Rahul Mangroo, the deputy chief executive of LWMA, yesterday reported that there was no significant smoke from the site and mopping work was underway to put order on the site post fire and reestablish the safety of the site for public access.

“Public had access to the landfill but could not dispose of used tyres. Now our main objective is to find an alternative site to stockpile used and old tyres and at the same time have a long-term management system in place,” Mr Mangroo said.

Mr Mangroo clarified that the used tyres are usually discarded on a plot next to the landfill and the site is not restricted. 

“LWMA will now see how to minimise the risks and manage this type of waste well and either sell or process it,” he said.

On site around 2.45pm yesterday, some firemen were still working and the vehicles from LWMA were busy putting soil over the burnt tires.

“If there are no other issues, we expect the fire to be completely off by 4pm (yesterday). Up till now we do not know the cause of the fire and we will have to wait for the outcome of the investigation. We are also hearing rumours out there but nothing is confirmed yet.”

To recall, the fire was next to the landfill where individuals dump old vehicle tyres. The tyres were stockpiled in the area as part of an ongoing tyre crushing project.

On Sunday, the SFRSA deployed 40 firefighters and on Monday 16 of them were on site.

“SFRSA is in constant communication with LWMA and they are helping us to coordinate the work on the site,” noted Mr Arnephy.

In the afternoon, we could see plenty of ‘Madanm Patons’ on the burnt trees and on the pile of fresh soil put by SFRSA and LWMA.

As for the highway, it was fully operational yesterday.

Vidya Gappy

Photos: Joena Meme