(Ottawa Fire Services responded to a call about a fire at the Tomlinson recycling facility ilocated in the industrial area on Westhunt Drive and Carp Road early Tuesday morning. Photos: Ottawa Fire Services)
Ottawa Fire Services received a 911 call at 6:58am reporting a recycling facility on Westhunt road off of Carp Road was fully engulfed in fire. Firefighters arrived on location at 7:06 am and confirmed flames coming from all sides of the structure; declaring a second alarm to summon additional resources to the scene.
The first crews on scene focused on preventing the fuel tanks and surrounding buildings from igniting while additional crews set up aerial ladder vehicles on all sides of the building to fight the fire from above.
Firefighters used a dozen tanker vehicles to shuttle water from a nearby hydrant to supply the large volume of water required. Ottawa Fire Services had 41 vehicles involved in the response including the tanker vehicles.
Haz-Mat technicians were on location working to control the runoff from entering the surrounding ditches. A specialized foam truck was used to supply fire suppressant product to smother the flames.
Thomlinson team members used heavy equipment to support firefighters by opening up sections of the metal walls in order to extinguish the fire inside. This is a major operation and crews will remain on location for most of the day.
