Tonnes of asbestos-contaminated waste has been dumped in a suburban Sydney street with authorities involved in a delicate clean-up operation.
Firefighters noticed several tonnes of the potentially deadly material when they were called to Chester Hill, west Sydney, about 1am on Monday.
A police hunt was immediately launched to find the culprit.
Tonnes of asbestos-contaminated waste has been dumped in a suburban Sydney street with authorities involved in a delicate clean-up operation
Emergency service workers discovered the asbestos after they suited up in hazmat gear to search through the waste, Seven News reported.
Residents in the Chester Hill area were told to stay inside their homes until Bankstown Council workers could safely remove the waste.
The Environment Protection Agency said it was investigating the incident.
Anyone with information about the waste, or with dash-cam footage of a tip-truck in the area, has been urged to contact the police.
Emergency service workers discovered the asbestos after they suited up in hazmat gear to search through the waste
Residents in the Chester Hill area were told to stay inside their homes until Bankstown Council workers could safely remove the waste
A truck was caught on CCTV footage, showing the full load of waste being dumped in the middle of the street.
Lumps of concrete, sticks, soil, and traces of asbestos were found, which could prove potentially deadly for anyone who breathes it in.
A team of investigators has been at the scene all morning attempting to determine exactly what is in the waste.
Regional Illegal Dumping Squad’s Daryl Atkins condemned the people responsible.
‘There are some arguments which say the tipping fees are the problem, but a lot of times it seems people are purely lazy,’ he told Nine News.
‘They want to unload their load the night before because they’ve got work to do again the next day – but this quite obviously is not the right place for the material.’
Samples for analysis will be taken from the waste, as police continue to investigate.
The culprit faces heavy fines and potential jail time.
A truck was caught on CCTV footage, showing the full load of waste being dumped in the middle of the street
CCTV footage captures the moment the rubbish was dumped in the middle of the Chester HIll street