Just after 10 p.m. last night, firefighters from Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue and Hillsboro Fire Department responded to reports of a fire and sounds of explosions at Aloha Garbage Company in the 20000 block of SW Blanton Street.
Within four minutes of being dispatched, firefighters arrived. After some initial challenges to gain entry into the secured site, firefighters were faced with two large garbage/recycling trucks fully engulfed in flames. They immediately began to fight the fire and protect nearby exposures from intense heat which had already caused the trucks’ tires to burst.
Though the flames from the vehicles’ cabs and exterior compartments were knocked down quickly, the fire inside the closed materials compartment burned stubbornly. Without the benefit of the hydraulics to open the compartment, firefighters had to use saws to breach the heavy-gauge steel to extinguish the remainder of the fire. Firefighters remained on scene for several hours contending with the residual heat and burning contents.
Though the fire remains under investigation, it is not currently considered to have been intentionally set. The fire appears to have started within a truck’s garbage/recycling compartment. Further investigation will be done in partnership with a private investigator and initial damage assessments of the two garbage trucks and a nearby chipper are approximately $60,000.
Garbage and recycling haulers are at the mercy of what customers decide to place in their curbside bins, so it’s always best to read labels regarding the proper disposal of household materials such as wood stain, paint, cleaning chemicals, medical waste, etc.
If people are unsure about proper waste or recycling disposal, they can call METRO’s information line at 503-234-3000.
