A SPECIALIST hazmat response team from Sydney, deployed to Tamworth to back up firefighters involved in a delicate clean-up operation after Sunday's suspicious factory blaze, has declared the area safe.
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About 25 firefighters spent a second day yesterday at the Rutec headquarters in Taminda to de-contaminate the scene after a fire ripped through part of the chemical business on Sunday morning.
Fire and Rescue NSW Inspector Rod Chetwynd said the arduous operation wrapped up about 3.30pm yesterday.
“Most of the chemicals and fertiliser that we’re dealing with on [their] own are safe, but the unpredictable nature is when they are mixed – and that can happen with damaged containers,” he said.
“We had 25 firefighters on scene from three different stations and that is Tamworth, West Tamworth and our back-up crew from Armidale, as well as a specialist HART crew from Sydney.”
The Hazard Advisory Response Team (HART) arrived yesterday to assist in the clean-up operation, after the scene was secured on Sunday night.
“The specialist hazmat crew were up from Sydney and they have higher-grade testing, which allowed us to examine and test the affected area and declare the site safe and hand it back to the owners,” Inspector Chetwynd said.
The blaze erupted about 6.30am on Sunday. Nearby residents reported hearing explosions and seeing a thick black plume of smoke.
The fire was under control within an hour, but the nature of the farming chemicals triggered the hazmat response.
And firefighters weren’t taking any risks yesterday, due to the volatile nature of the chemicals.
Hazardous material suits were worn and showers used to decontaminate crews as they left the fireground, while paramedics were on standby.
“We were going through all the fire-damaged containers that were on the site and making sure the products didn’t mix, and the products were isolated and left in the hands of the building owners,” Inspector Chetwynd said.
“There are some products that have mixed, which we separated and put them into separated containers to be disposed of.”
The site was handed back to Rutec, with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Tamworth council to continue monitoring the scene.
Police are also investigating the cause of the fire, which is still undetermined and being treated as suspicious.
“Tamworth police, with the assistance of Oxley detectives, are continuing inquiries," Inspector Matt French said yesterday.
“Police are appealing for any witnesses to the fire to come forward.”