A fire break was created at the landfill to stop the underground fire from spreading.
An aerial view shows smoke billowing from the affected area at the dumpsite.
SIBU: The Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) has managed to bring the underground fire at the closed Seng Ling dumpsite here under control.
This was stated yesterday by Bomba Sibu acting chief Wan Kamarudin Wan Ahmad who added that the operation will continue today to get to the fire deep in the ground.
“Actually, we did not see the fire (yesterday). Perhaps the fire is burning too deep underground,” he told The Borneo Post.
Efforts to put out the fire commenced yesterday morning, with firefighters and Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) staffers spread out across an acre of affected area.
They began by first digging up the earth before proceeding to hose the area using water sourced from a hydrant as well as two tankers provided by the council.
SMC chairman Clarence Ting in a Facebook post said smoke began to resurface after the initial firefighting effort, meaning the fire underground had yet to be put out.
“It will take a while before this stubborn fire can be (doused),” he said.
The landfill was officially closed in April this year after having served its purpose over the last 18 years. A trench was dug across the access road to the landfill to stop vehicles from entering the area. In early March this year, a total of 32 people squatting at the abandoned landfill, including six children, were rendered homeless after the area caught fire.
It had previously been reported that since the landfill was opened in 2001, it had been frequented by scavengers, a number of whom then became squatters there.