ANCONA The outbreaks continue to flare up, here and there, during the earth-clearing operations. The flames, fueled by paper, heat and wind, show no signs of dying. The smoke and ash, which falls like snow from above, turn everything grey. The air is unbreathable, it stings the eyes, it dries out the throat. The cleanup of the site will continue throughout today DS Smith Recycling, a British multinational that in Ancona, years ago, acquired Recupero 80, in via Caduti del Lavoro alla Baraccola, next to the Mirum Centre. After the night of fear experienced on Wednesday, with tongues of fire 40 meters high, explosions and an impressive column of smoke visible from kilometers away, the emergency has not yet ceased.
The scenery
The next day, the scenario looks like that of a war. Two sheds of the company specialized in the recovery and professional recycling of waste were destroyed: one collapsed, the other is unsafe. The main warehouse was saved. However, two trucks and three forklifts were charred, as were tons of paper, cardboard and aluminum that were stored and packaged, ready to be sent for processing. Luckily the warehouse was quite empty, otherwise things would have been even worse.
The trigger
Given the precariousness of the structures, the firefighters have not yet managed to enter the shed from which the inferno would have broken out. There is a compactor, which was destroyed, perhaps the trigger came from there. But it could have been a short circuit or the combustion of the stacked material. A 360-degree investigation is underway, the prosecutor’s office will open a file and have acquired videos of the fire. Malice cannot be ruled out even if, for now, there is no evidence to that effect. «Tracing the causes is premature – explains engineer Davide Nataloni, an official of the Ancona fire brigade – so far we have not been able to enter the shed from which we believe the fire started. We have not found any signs of forced entry so far.” The investigations are entrusted to the experts of the NIA (Fire Investigation Unit), the Flying Squad and the Scientific Police. The company, which was seized, had closed for about 4 hours when, around 11pm on Wednesday, a terrible fire shook the neighborhoods south of the capital.
Six teams of firefighters from Ancona, Osimo and Macerata for a total of 25 men worked for 9 hours to put out the flames. “We contained the fire to prevent it from spreading to other companies or buildings,” says Nataloni. Fear for 3 families who live in the building bordering DS Smith: the first to raise the alarm was a boy who was smoking on the balcony. «I saw the orange reflections, it was brutally hot: we ran away and rang all the doorbells», he says. Five people were forced to abandon their apartments, which were not damaged but for now uninhabitable. No one was injured or intoxicated, although two engaged couples who live a few meters from the burning company sought assistance from 118 because they had breathed in the smoke. Dozens of onlookers, including many young people, gathered at the Mirum Center to film the attraction of the fire, photos and videos to immediately feed to social media, however underestimating the risk of a toxic cloud. Arpam sampling is underway, the presence of dioxin and metals in the air cannot be ruled out. While waiting for the data, the Municipality, which activated the Coc, has ordered the closure of the red zone (the fire area) and the activities of the surrounding orange zone, while in the yellow zone (for a radius of one km from the fire ) recommendations apply: cleaning of streets and air conditioners, mask. Better to be careful.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Read the full article at
Adriatic Courier
