Garbage Truck Catches Fire in Hamden

HAMDEN, CT — A garbage truck fully loaded with recycling debris caught on fire Wednesday morning in Hamden.

Firefighters responded to the fire at about 8:11 a.m. in front of 20 Bradley Avenue.

Bradley Avenue is immediately adjacent to HFD Station 2, located at 71 Circular Avenue, and Engine 2 responded from quarters, Deputy Chief Gary Merwede said in a press release.

Firefighters determined that the truck was fully loaded with recycling and the engine and cab were on fire.

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Merwede said radiated heat from the cab and engine ignited the recycling load.

The Hamden Police Department closed both Circular Ave (due to the hydrant location) and Bradley Avenue during suppression operations.

Merwede said an access point was made, but the fire could not be extinguished fully while the load was on the truck.

With the cooperation of All American Waste, the owners of the garbage truck, dumpsters were brought to the scene for cleanup.

A 100-ton capacity wrecker was used to lift the cargo area and Hamden Public Works operators used a backhoe to remove the burning debris from the truck, according to Merwede.

The load was then fully extinguished.

A DEEP representative was called to the scene to assess the run-off from the operation and determined there was no environmental impact, Merwede said.

Photo courtesy of the Hamden Fire Department