"15 tonnes of aluminum waste ....."

 

The production, storage, transportation, and processing of aluminum dross is a hazard that many plants overlook. At any point during this cycle fire can result. Here is a reminder of this hazard during transportation to a processor.

The cargo of a truck emits smoke on the A8: delicate intervention for firefighters in Puget-sur-Argens

Thursday evening, the firefighters intervened on the Canaver rest area on the A8, closed for the time of the intervention, for a very technical operation which kept them awake until the early morning.

Around 9:10 pm, unexplained smoke emissions from the dumpster of a truck were reported to them.

The truck was actually transporting 15 tonnes of aluminum waste which heated up after its dumpster warmed up. The Sdis 83 firefighters took no risks and decided to establish a safety perimeter of around one hundred meters around the truck.

The rest area therefore had to be closed by the gendarmes.

A team specializing in chemical risks

The intervention consisted of transferring the cargo from the truck to two other "healthy" tippers supplied by Escota using a backhoe loader (also supplied by Escota) while spraying the aluminum with a specific product .

Given the technicality of the intervention, a team specializing in chemical risks was mobilized, as well as two fire-fighting vehicles and a water truck.

During the operations, the firefighters took several samples to ensure that there was no environmental risk.

At the end of the intervention, the waste was recovered by a company specializing in its treatment. No injuries are to be deplored and the rest area was able to reopen around 6:30 am.

We are ecstatic that no one was injured in this incident. In our opinion that occurred because of education. Education of the trucker, firemen, etc. Without that education the firemen would have dumped water onto the dross that ignited. Water should never be placed upon dross that has combusted because the fear is an explosion could result. We have reported on numerous incidents where a fire personnel were uneducated and unaware of the hazards of dross fire and placed water on it. The resulting explosions injured and even killed fire department personnel.

If your workplace produces aluminium dross does your local fire department know the proper procedure for extinguishing it?

Please comment.