About 100 firefighters are tackling a massive blaze at a waste facility in south-east London.
Fifteen fire engines were called to Landmann Way in Bermondsey shortly before 20:00 BST after about 50 tonnes of household waste caught fire.
London Fire Brigade (LFB) warned that a large amount of smoke was being produced by the blaze and advised local residents to keep their doors and windows closed.
I’ve edited the subject here to point out that the Windrush line is currently down. London Bridge train still working though
.
It’s incredible that this place should have two such large scale incidents seemingly back to back. I don’t imagine there will be much left now.
However I am expecting this to impact heavily on waste collections for Lewisham. Let’s see how long communication of that takes.
Did they ever report on the cause of the first fire a couple of months ago?
I don’t think it’s connected to Lewisham council. The location definitely isn’t Lewisham’s Reuse and Recycling Centre on Landmann Way, nor the SELCHP incineration plant. From the Windrush line you could see a fire damaged building just before the line goes under the main line railway bridge, which from Google maps suggests it’s either Quantum Waste or CD Waste Management. Neither of them look like they operate a Material Recycling Facility (MRF) that sorts domestic recycling collected in one bin.
It’s odd the media don’t report the company’s name - I guess they just use whatever the LFB statement says and any photos they can find, and it’s not an important enough story to follow up afterwards to find out which company it was.
Looking at some scene photos there is signage for a waste company called SSSI Ltd also operating on the same site. This article mentions all 4 possible companies located there.
Smouldering mound within building was still being doused with water by fire brigade as of roughly midday today (visible from London Bridge train). Roof to building is badly damaged.
edit: some Overground services are running now, not many and with lots of delays.
It all begs the question..how on earth do TWO fires break out in the same place just a couple of months apart??
it feels dodgy
Lithium ion batteries in “disposable” items are the biggest cause in recycling centres.
Second most common cause is machinery overheating.
The same scenes are being seen at numerous locations around London and the UK at the moment, as the obsession with short life items with batteries in continues to grow.
Thanks for the clarification. I think the issues last time were the access to the road leading into the site. Lewisham definitely had issues with the first fire for a day or two.
Yes it is the SSSI site. Full statement from Lewisham here.
Fires at recycling centres caused by wrongly discarded lithium batteries such as those found in vapes are occurring at the rate of more than 10 a week, according to new figures.
Experts say the sheer volume of battery fires now occurring at waste facilities has reached a crisis that is putting lives at risk, costing ÂŁ1bn a year and frustrating fire chiefs.
In figures shared with the Guardian, the Environment Services Association (ESA), the trade body for waste management companies, said its members had reported 1,518 fires in the year to March 2026. At least 541 of these fires were directly attributed to lithium ion batteries, the survey found. There were a further 216 battery fires in bin lorries.
