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Nottingham City Council has issued a stern public safety warning to residents following a distressing series of bin lorry fires this year, all caused by the incorrect disposal of batteries and electrical items.
The council’s waste and cleansing team has already faced six fires inside their collection vehicles, with the most recent on Friday forcing a recycling truck to dump its flaming load onto Roden Street in Sneinton.
The cause was traced back to a common item: a rechargeable power bank that had been mistakenly thrown into a household recycling bin.
This incident, alongside an earlier fire caused by an entire e-scooter being placed in a recycling bin, highlights the extreme danger posed by lithium batteries.
City officials explained that lithium batteries, found in almost all rechargeable devices, can 'combust when crushed and mixed with flammable materials such as paper' inside the vehicle, igniting up to 15 tonnes of waste or recycling.
When this happens, the safety of the public and the crew is immediately compromised.
The council is now appealing directly to householders to stop placing any electricals or batteries in general or recycling bins and instead to take them to designated recycling points.
This targeted plea is an attempt to mitigate a growing public safety hazard that costs time, money, and puts fire crews and waste disposal staff at unnecessary risk.