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Huge chemical fire breaks out in Canberra of Australia

Xinhua, September 16, 2011

• Australian fire fighters on Friday battled a massive chemical fire at an industrial estate in Canberra, ordering mass evacuations over fears that toxic smoke plumes from the fire.

  The fire broke out at a building in an industrial estate in the suburb of Mitchell in the Canberra's north at about midnight.

  A statement issued by the Emergency Services Authority said the entire suburb of Mitchell has been evacuated because of the possibility of toxins in the smoke from the fire.

  Emergency Services Commissioner Mark Crossweller said so far there have been no abnormal readings from atmospheric monitoring but these are continuing.

  "The readings are looking good," he said. "The inversion layer that we've had overnight is lifting, that's allowing the smoke to actually rise and disperse."

  But he warned that putting out the fire remained a complex operation.

  "We're a long way from saying the site's declared safe and we' re a long way from having the fire suppressed," he said.

  "But it is getting better as the minutes pass and we're confident we'll be on top of it very soon."

  At this stage there are no reports of casualties.

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