Neighbours close windows and doors as blaze breaks out at South Yorkshire recycling plant

Waste at the Shaw’s Waste Recycling recycling plant in Derwent Way, near Brampton, went up in flames which was discovered at 1.15am yesterday

Firefighters from Dearne, Cudworth, Barnsley and Rotherham stations were still at the scene well into the afternoon.

A South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue spokesman said there was a large smoke plume in the area and people are being advised to keep their doors and windows closed.

He said: “The cause of the fire is not yet known and a fire investigation will take place once the fire is completely out.”

Crews were still on the scene in the late afternoon, using a mechanical digger to get to the seat of the fire.

Adam Driver, operations manager at Shaw’s Waste, said bosses at the company were told about the fire in the early hours.

He said: “I was more than surprised – I was shocked.”

““We have had our staff in and they have been assisting the fire and rescue crews with their efforts.

“The firefighters were great – they were really prompt putting it out. We’ve been here 15 years and it’s the first time anything like this has happened.”

He added the cost and the damage to the business was not yet known, but it had an action plan in place.