Dumpster fire smokes out employees of Rip Curl warehouse

WORKERS at Rip Curl in Torquay were evacuated after a dumpster fire started near their warehouse earlier this afternoon.

Two units from the Torquay Fire Brigade were called to Rip Curl Warehouse 1 in the Surf City precinct after the fire was reported to the CFA by a Mitre 10 worker at about 2:50pm.

The fire was located at the warehouse’s side entrance in Letham Lane, connecting Beach Rd and Baines Crescent, where firefighters were able to neutralise and contain the potentially dangerous situation.

“The bin’s plastic lid created an abundance of smoke that travelled into Rip Curl Warehouse 1, so workers have had to stop working and evacuate,” Torquay Fire Brigade firefighter John Monagle said.

“We are using a fan to try to get some of that smoke out.”

Firefighter Monagle believed the fire was caused by a cigarette butt, but this is yet to be confirmed.

CFA members will go over CCTV footage to determine the cause of the fire.

Firefighter Monagle said there was no damage caused to the warehouse apart from some minor smoke contamination, and extra units arriving from Geelong had been called off.