The largest illegal tire dump in Europe, consumed by fire near Madrid

USPA NEWS - The largest illegal tire dump of Europe Friday dawned attacked by fire in the Toledo town of Seseña, just over 30 kilometers of Madrid. The column of black smoke, probably toxic, is visible from the capital of Spain.

In the landfill, declared illegal by the Spanish Justice for failure to comply with environmental legislation, there were 80,000 tons of tires, of which nearly 60,000 were consumed by fire at noon. Some neighborhoods in Seseña, the town in the province of Toledo where illegal landfill, just over 30 kilometers from Madrid, lies were evicted, although the authorities insist that, for the moment, there is no danger to health inhabitants of Seseña. The column of black smoke rises 1.5 km above the ground and moves in a southeasterly direction, driven by the wind. The area has spread a strong smell of burning rubber. Mayors of nearby municipalities are saying that the fire might have been caused.

The landfill was abandoned since 2010, when the company that managed closed its doors. By then it had been declared illegal, but nevertheless continued to accumulate tires. For now, the greatest concern is the toxicity of the smoke cloud caused by fire. The Spanish Government has offered material and human resources to tackle the fire. Regional authorities have requested a seaplane and created a firewall to prevent the fire continue consuming new tires. A similar fire in 2015 in another tire dump in the province of Leon, in northern Spain, took fifteen days to be quelled.