In Lębork, there was another fire at an illegal and closed scrapyard. Firefighters fought the fire all night long. The problem is not new, as it was the third fire in a month at the scrapyard, but this time there is a breakthrough – a serial arsonist fell into the hands of the police.
Three fires in a month, the latest last night, and acrid smoke hanging over the city. The garbage dump in Lębork in Pomerania is a ticking bomb that no one has been able to defuse for years. – These are foams, plastics, various types of tires and this smoke is very toxic, practically the entire Mendeleev table – informs Senior Capt. Marcin Elwart from the District Fire Department Headquarters in Lębork.
Firefighters extinguished the last fire at the dump site all night long because they did not have bulldozers or excavators to clear the burning heap. Car bodies, tires, and large-sized garbage were burning, theoretically illegally dumped for four years because the owner was ordered to clean it up, but he doesn't do anything about it. He does not pay a million zloty fine either.
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– Enforcement proceedings are ongoing and until they are completed we cannot talk about either failure or success – comments Radosław Rzepecki, deputy of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Inspector of Environmental Protection.
The illegal landfill in Częstochowa, full of toxic waste, is starting to be liquidatedPaweł Szot/Fakty TVN
Taxpayers will pay for securing the area
The landfill burned repeatedly. During the largest fire, two years ago, even a nearby railway line was closed due to smoke. The perpetrators are always elusive because practically everyone has access to the scrapyard.
The suspicion of arson fell on scrap collectors, so the policemen were even more surprised when they recognized a resident of Lębork, who had previously been convicted of theft and had served time in prison, in photos from a camera trap installed at the landfill after the penultimate fire. He was quickly arrested. He confessed to a series of arsons.
– Now we will determine what this man's motive was, if, of course, we confirm that he committed the arsons – says Asp. staff. Magdalena Zielke from the District Police Headquarters in Lębork.
The Lębork County Office is closing access to the scrapyard and plans to remove the most flammable materials from it. This is what the district budget allows. Liquidation of illegal landfills will cost millions and there is no indication that the owner will pay for it. Public money is used to temporarily secure the area.
Main photo source: Lębork24.info