A fire sparked by used fireworks in a cardboard recycling truck in Northland yesterday has prompted a warning to dispose of them properly following Guy Fawkes.
Whangārei District Council’s parks and recreation department field officer Grant Alsop told 1News that staff first noticed smoke coming from the back of their cardboard recycling truck in Whangaumu Bay yesterday afternoon.
“They quickly pulled over into a gravel lay-by and dumped the recycling out, then contacted volunteer firefighters.”
He said there were still fireworks “going off” inside the truck when they tipped out the load onto the gravel.
Alsop confirmed there were no injuries as a result of the fire, but said inappropriate disposal of fireworks was a danger to recycling staff who “shouldn’t have to deal with that”.
“If they hadn’t noticed the smoke, things could have been a lot worse and its not just a danger to our staff but other people in the community too.”
He also said people should not be recycling fireworks, as they were not clean cardboard tubes and would not be processed correctly.
“Soak them in a bucket overnight and then put them in the rubbish,” he said.
Fireworks cause ‘preventable fires’ — FENZ
Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s community education Manager Tom Ronaldson warned fireworks cause unwanted, “preventable fires” that could do significant harm.
“One fire caused by fireworks is too many. It is a preventable fire we have to attend. It is also a totally unnecessary fire that may take our crews away from another emergency.
He said there have been 676 reported fires since 2019 caused by fireworks, 513 of which were vegetation fires.
He said people lighting fireworks for Guy Fawkes should check the conditions in their area and take precautions to keep people safe, including checking local bylaws.
“We know people stockpile fireworks for summer, then let them off over the New Year when it can be drier and hotter and there is greater risk of causing a wildfire,” Ronaldson said.
“It is also dangerous to stockpile fireworks at home. The most obvious danger is fireworks accelerating the speed of a house fire, giving people less time to escape. It also offers the potential to injure firefighters who are not expecting that hazard in a house fire.
“Aside from this, there is also the risk the packaging, being cardboard, absorbs moisture and can soften and then not contain the firework correctly. This means that it may behave erratically and dangerously when lit.”
He said other safety tips included lighting fireworks in wide-open spaces, having water on hand to put any fire out, informing neighbours that you are planning to let them off and disposing of them safely afterwards.
