OPINION: This is serious. Campbellfield burns, Andrews must act
Schools are closed, kinders are in lockdown, neighbourhoods evacuated, the city stinks and it’ll be a fair while, no doubt, before we know what exactly was in that big black cloud that made its way south from Campbellfield on Friday morning.Factory fires happen, just like house fires and bushfires and they don’t necessarily have to be anyone’s fault.
There was only 300,000 litres of toxic chemicals, twice the permitted quantity, stashed at Bradbury Industrial Services, instead of the 450,000 litres found by Environment Protection Authority inspectors last month.People lose their minds at the EPA at times like this. But put yourself in their shoes. The present rules force the authority to “work with” an operator to clean up their site.
Fining dodgy operators ten or fifteen thousand bucks here or there doesn’t work, that’s painfully clear. Nor is it possible for the EPA to pull up to a problem site with a fleet of hazmat trucks and just load-up.Credit:Opposition environment spokesman David Morris was out on Thursday saying that the issue of toxic waste around Melbourne was a “time bomb”, a “potential health catastrophe”
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North Melbourne residents told to remain indoors as chemical fire burns | Sky News AustraliaMore than 80 firefighters remain at the scene of a chemical storage facility in Campbellfield, Melbourne’s north, where a fire is burning out-of-control. \n\nEmergency crews were called to the scene early on Friday morning after reports of explosions at the Campbellfield factory. \n\nResidents in Melbourne’s north have been told to remain inside with doors and windows closed, as plumes of thick, hazardous smoke billow into the air. \n\nFirefighters are monitoring a 20,000 litre LGP tank at the next door property, which they fear could explode. \n\nThe Environment Protection Authority reportedly suspended the licence of the storage and disposal company a fortnight ago.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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North Melbourne residents told to stay in-doors as factory fire burns | Sky News AustraliaMore than 80 firefighters are at the scene of an out-of-control blaze at a factory in the Melbourne’s north. \n\nWarnings have been issued for residents surrounding the Campbellfield complex to stay inside and keep their windows and doors closed. \n\nEmergency crews were called to the scene early on Friday morning after reports of explosions at the Campbellfield factory. \n\nAbout 30 workers who escaped the blaze, have described flames shooting 40 stories into the air. \n\nFirefighters are monitoring a 20,000 litre LGP tank at the next door property, which they fear could explode. \n\nThe Environment Protection Authority suspended the licence of the storage and disposal company a fortnight ago. \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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