Firefighters in Melbourne are battling a major factory fire in the city’s south-east after receiving reports a lithium-ion battery had caught alight.
A huge cloud of thick black smoke could be seen as firefighters fought to contain the blaze at two adjoining factories of the same business.
Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) said a caller to triple zero reported that lithium-ion batteries had caught alight at 8:38 a.m. on Jan. 30.
Firefighters immediately escalated the response and about 25 fire trucks and 70 firefighters battled the blaze, which caused significant fire, flames, smoke, and damage to the walls and the roof.
The fire agency noted early indications suggest the two adjoining factories contained both solar panels and lithium-ion batteries.
A video shared by Libertarian MLC David Limbrick showed a mammoth cloud of smoke from the scene, close to his office in Cheltenham.
“View from near my office in Cheltenham. Was reported to be a lithium battery fire,” he said.
Emergency services are now working together to collect aerial footage of the incident to enable a full assessment of the cause.
FRV’s Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, which is the drones team, assisted at the scene of the fire, along with Victoria Police.
Fire rescue said it took crews about two and a half hours to contain the fire, and as of noon it was not yet deemed under control.
“There were some initial limitations with access to the buildings where the fire was located, due to an inaccessible laneway and concerns of a partial structural collapse,” the fire agency said.
FRV Incident Controller Assistant Chief Fire Officer Barry Gray said firefighters made a “fantastic effort” to contain the fire to the buildings of origin.
The fire agency noted surrounding businesses were likely to remain closed for the day due to danger of smoke, depending on proximity.
“Firefighting activity will continue for some time and Chesterville Road is likely to remain closed for the rest of the business day,” the fire agency said.
