ST THOMAS, Jamaica — Plumes of smoke continue to hang over the Church Corner landfill in Morant Bay, St Thomas where fire broke out late Wednesday evening.

Mark Harris, divisional commander of the Morant Bay Fire Department, told OBSERVER ONLINE that his team got a call at 6:06 pm and managed to get the fire under control by about 9:00 pm.

“When we left the dump after nine last night, there were two tractors there using soil to cover the lingering blaze. Our team revisited this morning at 8:16 am to continue the mission,” said Harris.

He explained that dump fires are challenging to extinguish due to the sheer volume and compactness of the waste, which makes it difficult for water and firefighting chemicals to penetrate and effectively suppress the flames.

The issue of the fire was raised during Thursday’s monthly meeting of the St Thomas Municipal Corporation with Public Cleansing Manager at the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) Samuel Mullings, saying he was unable to provide details about the blaze.

“I cannot speak much on the fire, but what I can say is that the firefighters have been battling the fire since last night into today and I believe they have things under control,” he explained.

When contacted by OBSERVER ONLINE, Commander Harris said an investigation would be done once the fire has been completely extinguished.

Firefighters from the Morant Bay Fire Department are still at the scene.

– Ashagaye Mullings