Homes evacuated as fire engulfs recycling plant

Up to 80 people have been evacuated from their homes after a "severe" fire broke out overnight at a recycling plant, emergency crews said this morning.

The blaze began on Western Way in Moxley, Walsall, West Midlands, shortly before 4am and fire fighters cordoned off the area due to the presence of a large quantity of asbestos at the site.

Police evacuated residents while 15 fire engines and 16 fire fighters tackled the flames.

Many of the evacuees went to friends of relatives, while the rest were moved to Darlaston police station.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said there had been no serious casualties.

The service sent two ambulances and the Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) to the scene, while an additional paramedic was at the police station.

A spokesman for the service said: "The fire has caused a thick plume of acrid black smoke to move into a nearby housing area.

"So far there have not been any casualties from the fire itself though a handful of residents have been checked over, but thankfully no one has required hospital treatment.

"Ambulance staff will remain at the scene due to the large number of fire fighters tackling the blaze. The members of the HART team have specialist equipment in case it is required to enter the areas affected by the smoke."

The fire, at AWM Recycling Ltd, was being brought under control this morning, firefighters said.

Two joint units at the site, spanning around 100 metres by 50 metres, were affected by the fire, but flames were no longer reaching the roof of the building.

The palls of black smoke reported in the early hours were thinning to a grey mixture of smoke and steam and dispersing.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Fire Service confirmed that 16 fire fighters had initially been committed to tackle the blaze, but 50 were now bringing the situation under control, with more on hand.

She said: "We've got the incident under control here.

"We will be scaling it down in the next couple of hours."

Several people, including police officers, were treated at the scene for the effects of smoke.

Roads in the area were shut down earlier when the smoke was at its peak, with motorists urged to seek alternative routes.

A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: "The A41 Black Country New Road and some side roads close to the scene were closed."

Officers said it was too early to determine what caused the fire or whether it was suspicious.

Councillor Mike Bird, leader of Walsall Council, paid tribute to police, fire and ambulance services.

He said: "Once again we must praise the excellent job that the emergency services have done in responding to this very serious fire.

"Our emergency planning unit has been kept informed and has been at the ready to offer help to the residents who were evacuated from their homes. Thankfully, this help has not been needed.

"We are now assisting West Midlands Fire Service in their clean-up operation by offering specialist technical help.

"It goes without saying that any help we can give we will be more than happy to offer."