A garbage truck driver has been praised for his quick thinking after a discarded vape device triggered a fire inside the back of his recycling truck in Oxenford, a northern Gold Coast suburb in Australia.
Firefighters were called to a car park on Friday afternoon after the recycling truck caught fire and the driver was forced to dump its burning load.
A road user captured footage of the incident, showing the driver quickly turning off the main road and heading towards an empty car park before unloading the burning rubbish onto the paved surface.
The decision was widely praised online, with thousands of Australians commending the driver for choosing an open and accessible location where the burning waste could be safely dealt with.
“This driver is incredibly smart. He found an open area that was easy to access, making the clean-up relatively quick and straightforward,” one user wrote.
Another commented: “This is the driver of the year!”
A third user praised the worker, writing: “This waste worker had a mission and executed it brilliantly. Well done.”
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services is investigating the cause of the blaze.
Initial reports, however, indicate that the fire was likely started by a vape device that had been thrown into a recycling bin.
Vapes contain lithium batteries, which can explode or catch fire when crushed or compressed inside waste and recycling trucks.
Gold Coast Councillor Naomi Fowler shared the footage on Saturday and urged residents to take greater care when sorting and disposing of their waste.
“Thankfully, no one was injured and there was no impact on the recycling collection schedule,” she said.
