A fire that broke out at a plastics storage site in Padiham, Burnley, last month may have been started deliberately, police have said.

Lancashire Constabulary has said it has launched a full investigation into the cause of the blaze and is treating it as ‘suspicious’. The police have also appealed to members of the public for any information on how the fire may have started, and urged the people responsible to come forward.

Police are studying CCTV footage, and in particular are looking into video of a ‘number of youths’ in the area at the time.

DC Martin Legdon of Burnley CID said: “This was a reckless and extremely dangerous thing to do and it is fortunate that the fire was spotted and fire officers were able to extinguish it before it spread any further.

“If anyone has any information that they think could help us trace the people responsible then I would urge them to call us as soon as possible by calling 101 and quoting log number LC-20130724-1129.”

Fire background

Eight fire engines were called to a facility owned by Stephen Barnes on Park Lane on Wednesday 24 July following reports of a blaze at around 3.30pm.

According to the fire service, when the first two fire engines arrived on the scene, they were met with ‘bales of plastic on fire in a property that was 20m x 50m x 20m and a large plume of smoke emanating from the burning site that could be seen miles from the scene’. Witnesses also reported seeing flames climb to more than 100ft.

The Environment Agency determined that smoke issuing from the fire was not hazardous to human health, but the fire service sent out a message for local residents affected by smoke to stay inside and close windows and doors as a precaution.

By 9pm on Wednesday, the fire had been brought under control; however, fire fighters remained at the scene overnight to ensure that the flames did not flare up. The dampening down efforts are ongoing.

Stephen Barnes now runs the plastics storage site, previously owned by Lancashire County Council until 18 months ago.

Speaking to the Lancashire Telegraph, Barnes said: “I was quite upset when I saw it. I’m quite level-headed and we just need to get it back together.

“The heat was quite horrendous. I wasn’t best pleased. It’s going to cost a few quid to repair but the fire brigade did brilliantly.

“Some machinery was damaged, but to be honest I was more worried about everyone around us.”

It is not yet known how much plastic the fire affected.

Premier Waste fire

Image: West Midlands Fire Service.

In related news, a fire has broken out a recycling facility on Walsall Road, Birmingham. Around 80 firefighters were called to the Premier Waste UK Ltd site at 2.15am today (5 August) to tackle a blaze affecting around 500 tonnes of recyclables such as paper and plastics, as well as construction materials. The fire is reportedly confined to the building, and efforts are being made to cool the building to stop the fire from spreading.

Station Commander Hilton from West Midlands Fire Service said: “The fire is contained to the building. Jets are being used to cool the roof and the sides of the building.

“If people are affected by smoke our advice to them is to keep doors and windows closed.”

The Premier Waste fire comes just over a month after a massive blaze tore through J&A Young's (known as Jayplas) recycling plant in Smethwick destroying thousands of tonnes of plastic.

Caused by a Chinese lantern, the fire took several days to tackle and cost around £6 million.

The cause of the fire at Premier Waste is not yet known but an investigation will be launch to determine how it started.