Inveralmond fire: Gas cylinder blasts engulf recycling plant in flames By FRANK URQUHART Published on Saturday 18 February 2012 00:21 A CROWD of onlookers had to run for their lives when gas cylinders exploded, sending shrapnel flying into the air, as firefighters tackled a massive blaze at a recycling centre. The inferno at the Inveralmond Industrial estate in the north of Perth sent a huge pall of thick black smoke billowing a mile high, which could be seen up to 20 miles away. More than 70 firefighters from ten fire units managed to bring the blaze under control, despite having to draw water from the nearby River Almond when firefighting operations were hampered by water supply problems in the area. At the height of the blaze more than 300 workers at offices and factories close to the Wyllie Recycling Limited site in Ruthvenfield Way were evacuated because of the threat being posed by gas cylinders within the 100 tonnes of burning material at the recycling site. At least one canister exploded, sending shrapnel flying more than 40 feet through the air. One large piece of metal debris smashed into a warehouse roof before landing in a field where people had been watching the fire. Eyewitness Gerry Scott, 27, said he heard a massive bang as he joined factory workers and passers-by to watch the spectacular blaze. He said he had been driving to work in Perth when he saw the smoke rising from the recycling plant and pulled over to watch with workers from the estate and other motorists. He said: "You could feel the heat from it a long way back. Then there was a loud crack, like a car backfiring or fireworks going off, and that must have been some sort of gas canister. You could clearly see bits of it flying through the air and the largest piece tore right through the roof of the factory and something like 60 feet into the sky. As soon as we heard the bang we all legged it. People were running for their lives and it's just as well they did because bits were landing near where they had been standing. Another eyewitness said: "We were really close to the flames and I could see pallets of paper going up and huge flames consuming a row of fir trees, like a scene from Apocalypse Now. Then there was this loud bang and a large lump of jagged metal came shooting out of the smoke and slammed through the roof of a shed only a few metres away. The blaze began at about 7:40am when a quantity of waste caught alight in the main yard at the recycling plant, close to the main A9 road. The fire quickly spread amongst 100 tonnes of cardboard, paper, general waste, tyres and other material. A spokesman for Tayside Police said: "Due to the ferocity of the blaze, a number of nearby industrial premises were evacuated. All people are accounted for and no one has been reported injured. Station manager Roy Dunsire, of Tayside Fire and Rescue Service, said: "Throughout the operation, firefighting efforts were severely hampered by the lack of water supplies in the area and hazards such as exploding gas cylinders, and there was the constant threat of the fire spreading to several adjacent properties. Initial assessments have indicated that approximately four adjacent properties have been affected by smoke and heat damage. However, but for the efforts and extremely hard work of the fire crews to protect surrounding properties the damage could have been far more extensive and devastating.