Drill after Darlaston battery factory hit by two fires

G&P Batteries in Darlaston was filled with thick black smoke and actors had to be pulled from the building.

A total of 70 firefighters from forces across the Midlands took part in the exercise.

It comes after two fires broke out in as many months at the Willenhall Road site in Crescent Works Industrial Estate.

Firefighter Chris Hill who is based at the Willenhall station said: "There were a couple of incidents recently at the factory which we had to attend so we decided to carry out one of our weekly safety exercises here.

"The factory deals with lithium batters which are brought in to be recycled and repackaged and it is when they are repackaged that they can be particularly dangers as they set off a lot of smoke.

"We used synthetic smoke and there were five actors inside the building that we had to rescue with various different burns.

"It was a very successful exercise and the only feedback we gave was that there ought to be florescent paint on the floor to help us see when if we ever come across another fire."

The first fire at G&P Batteries in Darlaston which happened in January is believed to have been started by waste battery stock kept in the year.

The second, just a month later in February, started after lithium batteries caught fire in a storage building. One member of staff required treatment.

The building had to be evacuated with 40 staff fleeing the scene.

The exercise started at around 10.30am on Sunday and lasted for two-and-a-half hours.

The factory has since built a separate unit outside the factory where it recycle and repackages the batteries.

Managing director Michael Green said: "The training day was a great success for both G&P Batteries and West Midlands Fire Service.

"It marks another phase in the development of our close working relationship to minimise fire risks on site."