Preventative measures being put in place following Fond Cole landfill fire

Thick clouds of smoke billowed from the landfill fire

Landfill Manager of the Dominica Solid Waste Management Corporation (DSWMC), Jeno Jacob has said that some progress has been made in putting more security measures in place in response to a fire which occurred at the Fond Cole landfill on Saturday, February 23.

He said measures are being taken to enforce the separation of waste at its source.

“Don’t come to the landfill with wood… mix up with paper; we won’t accept that. You will be left out of the gate,” he warned

“We have already placed a fine… $200 [if] any truck who wants to come in the landfill with mix waste. You have to stay on the landfill and separate those waste because there are sections for the disposal of those categories or those items of waste,” Jacob warned.

He added, “The segregation or separation of galvanize, white goods, electronic waste at sections of the landfill – that will be demarcated with proper berms, soil berms and soil banks to ensure in the future those things won’t happen.”

Clouds of thick smoke billowed from the fire affecting the Fond Cole, Stockfarm, Goodwill and Roseau areas. This prompted the Office of Disaster Management (ODM) to issue a statement on Sunday asking residents in the vicinity of the landfill to move immediately as the fumes could be toxic and babies and children should not be exposed to it.

Also, as a result of the smoke and fumes from the fire, classes at the Dominica State College (DSC) were cancelled until Thursday, students of the Goodwill Primary School were dismissed early on Monday and a number of people who conduct business in the vicinity of the landfill, were forced to stop their operations.

Jacob said more fire hydrants are needed on the landfill, so that if an incident like this were to reoccur, it will be dealt with quickly.

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13 Comments

  1. Dominican
    February 28, 2019

    I would suggest we also install air monitoring equipment on a 24/7 basis that triggers an automatic alarm when dangerous levels of harmful fumes are released. Secondly, we should strictly enforce a ban on the erection of dwellings on , or within the perimeter of the waste site. If our claims and aims regarding environmental resilience are to be taken serious, such measures are a priority.

  2. %
    February 27, 2019

    This man sounds so dumb..Are you fooling anyone?
    Keep fooling yourself !
    Nothing about how the fire started,but just a lot of hot air from this man ..
    So shameful…Only in Dominica!!!

  3. Stock Farm
    February 27, 2019

    i think that the Solid Waste Corporation knows exactly how the fire started. After all it is not the first time that this is happening, i smell cover up and lies. meanwhile the people of Fond Cole, Stock Farm and Goodwill to name a few are affected but time will tell. I Guess the nonsense continues while we develop respiratory problems. 5 days now toxic smoke in our tail !!!!!!!

  4. Patroit
    February 27, 2019

    Invest in a biomass plant. Put your waste in it. Produce ethanol. Turn the landfill into a small power station. Create a few more jobs. Reduce a few pennies from the electric bill of dcans by selling power to Domlec via interconnection. Leave no opportunity for fires to be started. That might cost 1-2 passports.

    • derp
      February 27, 2019

      Awesome idea too bad those in power aren’t progressive minded!

    • Ibo France
      February 27, 2019

      @Patriot
      Your idea is exactly what is needed. We have to think outside the box. When a political party is in power for too long the government becomes complacent and bankrupt of ideas. Every aspect of the public service is malfunctioning. There are too many problems left unresolved. Easy flooding, impassable farm roads, bad healthcare services, meager salaries and I could continue ad nauseam, Don’t be misled.

    • Khides
      February 28, 2019

      Great Idea Patriot, that should have been implemented a long time ago.

  5. Neville
    February 27, 2019

    How many times have I heard that before…! Useless as everything in DA that has remotely to do with the government.

  6. confused
    February 27, 2019

    After reading this I am non the wiser

    What the hell really happened at the landfill?

    • Dominican
      February 27, 2019

      You are right. We still do not know how this fire started and was the cause of combustion that proved so difficult to extinguish. This worries me a great deal. Unless it is a matter of national security we need full disclosure if only to remove rumour and disquiet. Keeping silent only serves to to erode our confidence and trust in the relevant authorities.

      • derp
        February 27, 2019

        The fire is not totally out btw I can still see some smoke

  7. Man bites dogs
    February 27, 2019

    And why was not more preventative measures put in place a long time ago this is not the first time it has happened and nothing was done. The truth is some of us people like our backsides kicked before anything is done, and it’s time we wake up and get out of that slave mentality.

  8. iprotest
    February 27, 2019

    Jacob said more fire hydrants are needed on the landfill, so that if an incident like this were to reoccur, it will be dealt with quickly.

    De manager is admitting that de landfill is not properly equipped.
    what is de result of de investigations by the way??????
    How did the fire start?
    If it was a break in of the compound by scavengers in the dump Mr. Jacob would have been lashing out at dem and de security would have picked up on that already.

    I smell a rat!!!!!!
    And i am quite certain that the fire was not started by any intruders to the compound…….there ha e been no report of a break in at the landfill

    Poor poor management at the landfill………solid waste is de only people to blame for this one……the manager is conducting investigations he says

    if it was stale rotten codfish that scavengers was taking we would hear about a break in of de compound.

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