Fire crews praised for swift action on Wem tyre blaze

Civic leaders have praised fire crews for their swift handling of a blaze at a Shropshire industrial estate. About 50 county firefighters battled the fire from Sunday lunchtime.

However by 8am yesterday the large fire at Kingpin Tyres Limited, on Wem Industrial Estate, was out.

The blaze involved an estimated 20 to 30 tonnes of shredded rubber, but fire officials said they managed to bring it under control quickly because of expertise gained tackling two other fires at the same site in the last 15 months.

Environmental bosses have now revealed they will be reviewing the firm's waste permit, which they say is standard procedure.

Officials from the Environment Agency, Health Protection Agency and Shropshire Council were called to the site following the fire due to concerns that the smoke posed a danger to public health. However after monitoring air quality they found there was no cause for concern.

Officers from the Environment Agency also found no evidence of pollution in the nearby watercourses, but will continue to monitor them over the coming days.

Speaking at a meeting of the Wem and Shawbury area Local Joint Committee last night, Wem Mayor Councillor Mandy Meakin said: "Thank you very much to the fire service for reacting so quickly to the Kingpin fire. Resources began to arrive on site almost the instant it was reported so the firefighters really deserve our thanks."

Martin Timmis, head of operational response at Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "There was a similar fire at the same site in September last year which took weeks to put out, and our experience there helped us deal with this one much more quickly."