‘Massive’ blaze at meat plant seen from kilometres away
A ‘‘massive’’ blaze at a meat byproducts processing plant near the Auckland-Waikato boundary could be seen from kilometres away.
Emergency services received several calls about the fire in Lapwood Rd at Tu¯a¯kau, about 8.20pm on Tuesday, a Fire and Emergency NZ spokesperson said.
There were 22 fire crews in attendance at Tu¯a¯kau Proteins, with the Tu¯ a¯ kau fire brigade first on the scene. Station officer Matt Wilson said that when he turned up to the station he could see the glow of the fire in the distance, and smoke.
When they arrived at the blaze they were instantly hit with a challenge, as there were no fire hydrants in the area. ‘‘There was a pond there, so we dipped into that.’’ They also ran hoses to the closest hydrant, which was kilometres down the road.
There were no reports of anyone inside the building and no injuries reported.
Tu¯a¯kau local Geneivre Stenklev-Gussey said she heard ‘‘explosions and cracking’’ coming from the plant about
8.30pm. From her home in Geraghtys Rd she could see the flames engulfing the nearby buildings and plumes of smoke billowing into the sky.
Meanwhile, another resident said the flames were stretching
150 metres in the air.
Two fire investigators were working to determine the cause of the blaze.
Tu¯a¯kau Proteins has a strained relationship with some residents, due to the odours emitted by the plant. Last year, the plant was fined $180,000 for polluting the Waikato River and discharging offensive odours during the 2019 Christmas period.
The Waikato Regional Council is considering an application for a new resource consent, which would allow odour discharge.
A plant spokesperson declined to comment yesterday.