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Vape battery caused 450-tonne cardboard fire

Paul BurnellNorth West
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service The front of a fire engine can be seen on the left of the image, with a large pile of cardboard on fire and large plumes of smoke billowing into the sky. A single-storey building can also be seen ablaze.Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service
The blaze is believed to have been accidental, Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service says

A large blaze involving about 450 tonnes of cardboard, where huge plumes of smoke could be seen for miles around, is thought to have been caused by a disposable vape battery, fire investigators have said.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said the blaze at a recycling facility in Widnes, which "spread rapidly", was "believed to have been caused accidentally by a damaged lithium-ion battery".

It said this was "most likely from a disposable vape that had been incorrectly disposed of".

Nobody was injured in the fire, which was attended by 25 engines from Cheshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester, and declared a major incident.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service A badly fire-damaged building can be seen, with flames still burning and plumes of smoke in this aerial photo.Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service
An aerial shot taken by the fire service shows the scale of the blaze at its height

A Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said: "It is thought that the damaged battery entered thermal runaway, generating intense heat which ignited cardboard within a pile of waste awaiting recycling.

"Driven by strong winds, the fire spread rapidly, resulting in multiple separate areas of the waste stockpile becoming involved."

Altano Drone Photography A large plume of smoke can be seen billowing up into the sky, with the Runcorn bridge visible in the distance.Altano Drone Photography
A drone shows the large plume of smoke billowing from the recycling centre on Monday

She said the incident highlighted "the importance of disposing of vapes and other lithium-ion battery-powered items correctly", and warned that damaged batteries "can pose a significant fire risk if placed in general waste or recycling".

Due to the risk of the building collapsing, firefighters tackled the blaze from the outside and worked overnight to extinguish the fire.

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