A local bin wagon has been forced to dump burning refuse over Queen’s Road.
A section of Queen’s Road is temporarily closed to traffic and pedestrians, with fire crews leading efforts to clear the piled refuse.
OTS News understands alarms were raised when a bin lorry started to smoke just before lunchtime today.
When the alarm was raised the lorry driver tipped out the vehicles contents – tons of discarded rubbish – onto the road.
Emergency services responded and fire crews were seen damping down the pile of rubbish with water.
A digger and street sweeping vehicles have now been called to take the rubbish away.
A spokesperson for Sefton Council said: “During the course of a collection round in Southport today (Wednesday January 11th) a waste management crew became aware of smoke in the rear of a waste collection vehicle.
“Our professional crews acted swiftly to ensure all relevant safety measures were taken and, as a precaution, they were advised by emergency services to unload the contents of the vehicle onto the carriageway.
“We understand an incorrectly disposed of flammable device may have caused this issue and we would like to take this opportunity to remind residents of their responsibilities when correctly disposing of harmful or flammable materials.
“A Street cleansing team is currently on site to ensure the carriageway is cleared of any debris to ensure the road is reopened as quickly as possible.
“We would like to thank our crew for their swift actions and the emergency services for their support in dealing with this matter.”
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