THE smoke from a massive landfill is now moving towards Weymouth.

The fire at the Trigon Landfill, Bere Lane, Wareham, started on Sunday afternoon. A spokesman for the Viridor site said that ‘good progress’ had been made and that the fire was now under control.

However fire crews will maintain a presence at the site for another one or two days.

With the fire now in its third day, crews from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have also been called in to help out their Dorset colleagues as fatigued firefighters are rested.

Thirty-nine out of 40 fire crews across Dorset have been involved in fighting the blaze.

Fire fighters were called to tackle the flames just before 5pm on Sunday (AUG31), and six crews containing around 50 fire fighters originally fought the flames at Viridor landfill site, on Bere Road, near Wareham Forest.

A spokesperson for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service said that they had employed nearly every fire engine across the county at the Trigon site since the first emergency call came in. Colleagues from Hampshire have provided high volume pumps to help extinguish the flames.

She added: “There was significant progress on Monday night, meaning that the smoke is now a lot lighter than it was on Sunday and Monday.

“The smoke plume has also moved so that it is now heading west towards the Bere Regis and Weymouth direction.”

She added that all smoke is toxic but the service does not have any concerns in relation to the smoke issuing from this fire and says residents are able to open their windows, if they wish to.

However, she went on to say that have breathing conditions or illnesses should avoid inhaling the smoke where possible.

The blaze covers around 10,000 cubic metres of land and Craig Baker, area manager for Dorset Fire and Rescue Service, said that that fire fighters will remain on-site for the very near future.

He said: “Huge progress has been made on site over the last 24 hours extinguishing and smothering the fire, thanks to the hard work of the fire crews and Viridor staff.

“I would anticipate a fire service presence on site for another one-to-two days.”

Dan Cooke, director of external affairs for Viridor said: “Our colleagues continue to work closely with the Dorset Fire and Rescue Service to fully control and extinguish this fire, and with the Environment Agency to manage the situation safely and effectively.

“We'll continue to keep local parties and our customers updated.”