Concerns over plans for firelighter storage warehouse metres from homes
Residents living just 50 metres from a proposed new storage facility for firelighters say they fear the plans will put their homes at risk.
People living near Tiger Tim in Rhosesmor – the world’s largest manufacturer of firelighters – are asking Flintshire County Council’s Planning Committee to insist on stringent and clear fire safety measures to be put in place beyond the standard industrial measures, due to the nature of the business and the proximity to their homes.
Typically Tiger Tim has split its retail-ready barbecue and firelighter products between on and off-site storage, but has now submitted plans to build a 12.5m high, 1,632 square meter warehouse at the Flintshire site, which the council’s planning committee is expected to consider on Wednesday, July 15.
This will have capacity to house 992 pallets of firelighters ready to ship out to retail and will be situated just 50m from the nearest residential property opposite on Wern Road.
Tiger Tim is an international business manufacturing more than 100 million firelighters every year at sites across Europe. In Rhosesmor it operates 12 production lines 24 hours a day.
Nearby residents have come out in opposition to the planning application however, citing concerns over the fire risk to their homes and seeking answers as to how the company will protect them.
On resident, GP Emma Poyner said: “I am fearful for the health and safety of residents in the village.
“I am particularly anxious about how fire appliances would access the Wern Road side of the site if they needed to respond to a serious fire or evacuate staff safely from the offices.”
Bethan Lewis-Roberts, who lives on Wern Road, added: “We are very concerned about the proposal to store all firelighters on site, instead of using the current off-site warehouse.
“We believe this creates a major safety issue, with large volumes of firelighters being stored within metres of residential homes and pensioners’ bungalows. Tiger Tim has had two previous fires, if there was another with that volume of material on site, we fear nearby homes could be lost.
“Road safety is another concern. The proposal to put in a hard edge would effectively narrow Wern Road, making it less safe for pedestrians and more difficult for larger vehicles, including school buses, tractors and trailers, to pass safely.
“We are absolutely not against Tiger Tim improving the site. But these serious concerns need to be properly addressed before planning permission is granted.”
Councillor Fran Lister, who represents the area, said that she wanted to see more done to address residents’ concerns, particularly the fire risk.
“This is not a normal industrial unit on a remote industrial estate. It is a firelighter manufacturing and storage site in the middle of a village with homes nearby.
“That is why the planning committee needs to see a clear, site-specific fire-risk strategy before permission is granted.
“Residents are understandably asking what would happen if there was a serious fire, how fire crews would access the site, whether there is sufficient turning space for appliances from Wern Road and whether the existing water pressure is strong enough for a site of this size.
“Nobody wants to be looking back in years to come, after a serious incident, asking how this was ever allowed without those questions being answered.”
She also believes that residents concerns about the scale of the development – and individual properties being overlooked by offices – have been ignored during the consultation period so far.
Fellow local member Cllr Simon Jones added: “The key question is whether this particular proposal has been properly assessed. Members should not have to assume that standard industrial guidance is enough for a development storing this volume of firelighters close to homes.
“Before any decision is made, the committee should be satisfied that there are clear answers on fire access, water supply, containment, evacuation risk and how nearby homes would be protected in the event of a serious incident.”
The proposed site plan shows new sprinkler tanks and a pump house, but councillors say this does not replace the need for a full explanation of how fire risk would be managed on this site.
In relation to the fire risk, Tiger Tim has set out in its application proposals for a new sprinkler system for the whole site, with tanks to store and use surface water as well as mains supply in the event of a fire.
Tiger Tim was approached for a comment.
By Alec Doyle – Local Democracy Reporter
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