Building Fire, Lakemba
Published: 2nd February 2006
Just after 4 pm on 1 February 2006 a fire broke out in a single level brick building in Lakemba. Soon after, the NSW Fire Brigades received triple zero calls to the fire and immediately sent crews from Lakemba and Campsie.
The Lakemba crew was on the scene within five minutes to confirm smoke issuing from a cottage converted into storage units. Firefighters entered the building to search for occupants and investigate the source of the smoke. It was quickly established that the building was unoccupied. Most of the storage units were empty, but one was stocked floor to ceiling with bags of recycled clothing and a fire burning in this unit was generating large volumes of smoke.
The enormous quantity of stock in the unit made it extremely difficult for firefighters to access the fire and extinguish it. Crews positioned hoses to best advantage and soon had the fire contained. Another four crews were responded to help remove bags of clothing, making a total of 30 firefighters committed to this incident.
In an operation which lasted for four hours, firefighters painstakingly removed the stock from the building, gradually accessing the fire and extinguishing it as they progressed. By the end of the battle, the unit and much of its contents had been severely damaged by the fire. Fire crews saved the rest of the building and the bulk of the stock. There were no reports of injuries.
The circumstances of the fire are being investigated by the NSW Fire Brigades’ Fire Safety Division.
Contact officer: Gordon Boath 0417 293 852