A Waste Management trash truck unloaded a flaming pile of garbage in a parking lot in House Springs before the fire could spread to the truck today, Oct. 30.
The High Ridge Fire Protection District was called to Hunter Lane just beyond the El Mariachi Mexican restaurant at 12:18 p.m. to put out the fire. Chief John Barton said it took firefighters about 5 minutes to douse the flames.
“(The truck driver) dumped the load onto the parking lot there, and the crew extinguished it when they got there,” Barton said.
Barton said no one was injured by the fire. He added the district doesn’t investigate fires of this nature, as finding the actual source of the fire would be nearly impossible.
“There are a number of things that could have started that type of fire; it could have been anything from smoking material that was thrown into a trash can shortly before (the garbage truck) got there to batteries or something else.”
The firefighters performed an “overhaul,” Barton said, where the crew used hand tools to pull apart all the trash and ensure the fire was fully doused.
“It’s not always a pleasant task,” he said.
Barton said the garbage company will be responsible for collecting the trash from the parking lot.