The driver of the vehicle acted quickly, following emergency protocols, and firefighters extinguished the fire safely.

The incident is an important reminder of why electronic waste is banned from all household bins and public bins.

Electronic waste, or e-waste, is any item with a plug, battery or power cord.

“When compacted in a truck, batteries and electronics can explode and cause dangerous fires,” explains Paul English, State Operations Manager, Solo Resource Recovery.

“This includes items that have batteries embedded in them, such as household appliances, vapes, and even toys. We need the community to be extra careful and keep these items out of their bins”

We urge our community to do the right thing and keep workers safe. It is everyone’s responsibility to manage waste correctly.

Here’s what to do with your old electronics and batteries.

Batteries: drop off at Council Library e-waste stations or a B-cycle drop off point located in most supermarkets and hardware stores.

Small electronics: drop off at Council Library e-waste station.

Large electronics: household appliances can be booked for pick-up through Council’s hard rubbish service or taken to a waste transfer station. Batteries should be removed from all items before disposing in hard rubbish. Items with embedded batteries should be taken to a waste transfer station and will not be collected in hard rubbish.

For more information, visit our Electronic waste page.