Smoke billows from a fire at a scrapyard in Malahide Township, Ont. on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019. (Source: Brent Smith / Malahide Fire Services)
LONDON, ONT. -- Fire crews from several stations were called in to deal with a difficult fire at a scrapyard northwest of Port Burwell, Ont. on Thursday morning.
About 40 firefighters from Malahide, Bayham and Central Elgin responded to the fire on Calton Line, which was called in shortly before 8 a.m.
Brent Smith, director of fire and emergency services in Malahide Township, says the fire quickly spread across half of the two-acre site that had a construction trailer at the centre.
The fire quickly spread to large piles of combustible material and fire crews had to take up a defensive position, Smith adds, with seven tankers hauling in water to deal with the blaze.
The fire was brought under control shortly after noon and extinguished by around 1:30 p.m., with crews clearing the scene an hour later.
Smith said in an email statement, "The fire investigation will be very difficult to undertake due to the amount of damage and the compromised condition of the site. The cause of the fire will be undetermined."
No firefighters were injured. The property owner was checked at the scene for breathing difficulties but not transported to hospital.
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