PARTS of Lautoka’s Vunato landfill are sometimes deliberately set on fire to contain the amount of waste that enters the dump daily.
This, according to former landfill supervisor Peceli Dau, who worked at the dump site for 13 years until February this year.
This revelation comes on the back of a recent fire that allegedly began from the special waste section of the dump last Sunday. Since then the fire has produced a consistent blanket of heavy smoke that has covered the city’s main business centre, neighbouring settlements, residences and businesses while reducing visibility for motorists on certain roads.
Mr Dau said burning parts of the dump was necessary although illegal. “Sometimes it is done to clear up the waste quickly, like from metal scraps.”
He said that at other times, waste pickers also set fire to other parts for similar reasons.
“That usually happens when there is not enough security at the landfill.”
Mr Dau said council workers were usually left to contain the fires.
“Usually we’d just cover our nose and go near the fire and try and put it out.
“We were given water pumps that we’d use to draw water from nearby saltwater ponds we dug out for this reason. But during the day it would be low tide, so we had to wait for the ponds to fill up. By the time the ponds fill up, the fire would have spread to another section of the dump.”
Mr Dau said these issues must be addressed immediately. Questions sent to the Lautoka City Council remained unanswered.
l Editorial Comment: P8
