Firefighters to enter Willenhall factory after blaze

Mar 27 2008 By Dale Williams

FIREFIGHTERS were today still waiting to enter the wreckage of a Black Country factory destroyed in a huge fire.

The premised of G & P Batteries Ltd were rocked by a series of explosions after the fire broke out at about 7pm on Tuesday.

The blaze raged throughout the night at the battery recycling plant off Willenhall Road in Willenhall.

A 200ft cordon was thrown up around the area, including The Crescent and Bentley Road South, and residents were warned to stay indoors as batteries and gas cylinders exploded in the heat.

Acid batteries were inside, along with around 15 tonnes of lithium batteries, making the situation very dangerous for firefighters.

Today structural engineers were expected at the scene to examine the building, part of which collapsed yesterday.

More than 80 firefighters were on site at the height of the blaze with around 30 remaining throughout yesterday.

Firefighters used two aerial platforms to fight the flames from above since the structure was considered too dangerous to enter. Pockets of heat are still though to be inside and need to be tackled.

Two firemen were treated for minor injuries, the ambulance service said, but they remained at the scene after receiving first aid. The cause of the fire is believed to be accidental.

People living in the area described the massive bangs and flashes as like a ’giant firework display’.

At one point the smoke was so thick the nearby Black Country Route had to be closed to traffic.

Walsall councillor Bill Madeley, who lives in the area, said the fire had caused "chaos" in Willenhall.