Fire contained in trailer at Emmet County Recycling Center on Thursday

HARBOR SPRINGS — A fire broke out in one of the Emmet County Recycling trailers on Thursday, Emmet County Department of Public Works Director Andi Tolzdorf confirmed to the News-Review.

One of the truck drivers smelled smoke after dumping a bin into the compactor and alerted the supervisor to the smell. The garbage in the trailer was immediately unhooked from the compactor and then moved to an open location away from buildings and equipment, Tolzdorf said.

"All of our staff who were on-site at the time, they all responded very quickly," she said.

After the driver alerted the supervisor to the fire, 911 was called and the Harbor Springs Fire Department and Emmet County Emergency Medical Services both responded to the call.

"They were all there within minutes and definitely had the situation under control," Tolzdorf said.

The fire broke out in a GFL-owned trailer. The Emmet County Recycling Center is responsible for filling the trailers, which GFL then transports to a landfill.

While there's no way of knowing exactly what caused the fire, Tolzdorf said she thinks it could have been started by a lithium battery or another flammable material.

"We are using this as an opportunity for education that we do have proper ways of disposal for both batteries or flammable materials, and neither of them are to dump them in the garbage can," she told the News-Review.

The Emmet County Recycling Center does offer services to help residents learn how to properly dispose of hazardous materials, like gasoline or lithium batteries.

Tolzdorf said Emmet County offers free battery recycling, with drop-offs accepted at the recycling center, as well as at Meyer Ace Hardware, W.W. Fairbairn and Sons in Alanson and Cook's in Pellston, as do many township halls.

"Those are where you can properly dispose of batteries, they should not go in your recycling bin or in your garbage bin," she said.

She also said lithium batteries have to have their terminals taped, asking that clear tape be placed over exposed ends of any lithium battery.

"Lithium batteries are super susceptible to sparking and catching on fire, so if they are taped, that prevents the sparks from happening and it is the best practice in reducing fire risk from batteries," Tolzdorf said.

Any other flammable materials, like gasoline or other chemicals, can be disposed of at Household Hazardous Waste events hosted by the center. The next event is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 28 and it is for Emmet County residents only and by appointment only. Appointments will open up in August.

For any questions about how to properly dispose of items, call the Emmet County Recycling Center at (231) 348-0640.

— Contact reporter Karly Graham atkgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at@KarlyGrahamJRN.