Refuse vehicles destroyed in Tuesday night N17 fire

Fire crews tackle the blaze (image Sevgi Kaymak)

Firefighters were called to Veolia’s depot in Tottenham, North London, just after midnight on Tuesday following reports of several vehicles on fire. The depot is the main base used by Veolia to deliver its 14-year waste collection deal with Haringey council.

A spokeswoman for the London Fire Brigade said: “We were called at 12.18am last night to Ashley Road in N17 and we sent five fire engines to the scene, with 25 firefighters. Six council refuse lorries were completely destroyed by the fire and four were partially damaged. Firefighters led four people to safety from the scene. The fire was under control at 1.56am this morning.”

The Fire Brigade added that the cause of the fire was still under investigation. However, it is not thought at present that it is related to the civil disturbances seen in the capital over the last few nights.

A spokesman for Veolia said: “There was an incident at our site last night. The site is our main base for our Haringey contract. Our services have not been affected and contingency measures have been put in place”.

A spokesman for the London Metropolitan Police said: “Police were called out to reports of a number of vehicles on fire on an industrial estate at approximately 00.30 hours last night. The London Fire Brigade were on the scene and cordons were in place. The fire is being treated as unexplained.”