'It's the first time I've seen something like this' - Fire service commander speaks out after 5ft of fly-tipped rubbish blocks hydrant prior to Kingswinford blaze
A West Midlands Fire Service incident commander has talked of the importance of leaving water access points clear following a fire in Kingswinford.
It comes after the fire service attended the incident on Oak Lane, Kingswinford, on Thursday, which saw more than 100 tons of scrap material affected at a scrap metal and appliances yard.
However, while the fire service is said to have attended the incident quickly, they were shocked to find that the water access point was covered by more than 5ft of fly-tipped rubbish.
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The mound of ditched waste material meant that firefighters had to spend '10 to 15 minutes' clearing the site before being able to attach hoses to the responding vehicles.
Fire incident commander, Mr Andy Shakespeare, said: "When we first arrived on the scene, we quickly started looking for water access points and hydrants, and while we found one, it was unfortunately underneath a significant amount of waste.
