An violent explosion in a recycling plant A fire in the La Borda industrial park in Caldes de Montbui (Barcelona) broke out early this morning. The blaze generated a huge plume of smoke. Black smoke visible from much of Vallès OrientalIt has forced the closure of the C-59 road and has put emergency services throughout the area on alert.
The provisional balance leaves Three workers seriously injuredSignificant material damage and a virtually destroyed warehouse. Despite the spectacular flames and successive explosions that could be heard from the town, emergency teams managed to to prevent the fire from spreading to other companies in the industrial parkwhich would have further complicated the situation.
Initial explosion and rapid spread of flames
The fire started after 7 a.m., around 7:10-7:12 a.m., in a warehouse belonging to the company Tratamiento de Subproductos Industriales, dedicated to recycling of chemical productssuch as aerosols and paint cans. According to the account of the Generalitat Fire Department and several witnesses, an initial explosion in a machine detonated some of the stored material, generating a chain reaction with other items. successive aerosol deflagrations.
The fire chief on duty, Albert Cervera, explained that upon arrival they encountered a scene "like small bombs," since The pressurized containers were launched like projectiles. and even reached the C-59 highway, which runs directly in front of the facility. The combination of flammable products and the building's structure allowed the fire to spread rapidly across approximately one thousand square meters of the surface, leaving the deck completely sunken.
Workers from nearby businesses describe how, in a matter of seconds, the interior of the building was engulfed in flames. One of them recalls hearing a "very loud" explosion, the dividing wall "being blown off," and, upon going outside, seeing how One of the affected workers was running engulfed in flamesOther employees in the industrial park described a "Dantesque" scene and repeatedly said thatIt looked like hell.» due to the intensity of the heat and the height of the flames.
As the first emergency teams arrived on the scene, the column of black smoke grew rapidly and became visible from several kilometers away, causing concern among residents of Caldes de Montbui and nearby towns. Despite the magnitude of the fire, it was ultimately brought under control. The population was not ordered to be confinedHowever, this option was on the table if environmental measurements had detected worrying levels of pollution.
Three workers seriously injured and a large medical deployment is required
The Sistema d'Emergències Mèdiques (SEM) has confirmed that the three wounded They are workers at the plant who were inside at the time of the explosion. All of them have been evacuated to Vall d'Hebron Hospital in Barcelona, a reference center for severe burn victims in Catalonia, where they remain hospitalized.
According to the initial medical assessments released by the emergency services and by the fire chief himself, One of the injured has burns covering approximately 20% of the body surface.While the other two have around 9%, although in areas considered critical. Some witnesses report that one of the workers emerged "on fire, without hair or eyebrows," and that colleagues from a neighboring carpentry workshop managed to smother the fire with your own hands and with clothing before the ambulances arrived.
To address the emergency, the SEM mobilized a important device: eight ambulances, one medical helicopter and at least one joint SEM-Firefighters teamThe team specializes in coordinating incidents of this type. The paramedics performed initial stabilization treatments at the industrial park before proceeding with the urgent transfer of the victims to the Barcelona hospital.
Municipal sources have confirmed that, beyond these three seriously injured, There are no reports of fatalities. Nor were there any other serious injuries, despite the fact that the fire occurred during peak work activity at the La Borda industrial park. The mayor of Caldes de Montbui, Isidre Pineda, emphasized that all the injured are employees of the company where the fire broke out.
The President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, has conveyed his institutional support for the City Council, the company and the staffand wished a speedy recovery to the three hospitalized workers. The incident has also reopened the debate about safety conditions in facilities that handle chemicals or flammable materials in shared industrial environments.
Firefighters' actions and fire control
From the first minutes of the emergency, the Generalitat Fire Department deployed a force that, according to various official reports, included between 16 and 18 operational crewsThe initial alert came into the coordination center shortly after 7 a.m., between 7:02 and 7:12, and the first crews took only a few minutes to arrive at the La Borda industrial park area.
The corps' priorities focused on three fronts: to protect the lives of workers and emergency personnelto prevent the flames from jumping to the adjacent ships and contain the large fire load inside the recycling plantTo ensure maximum safety, the Fire Department requested the immediate shutdown of the electricity supply throughout the industrial park, leaving the area without power during the firefighting operations.
With the fire raging inside the main building, the teams focused on creating "firebreaks" using water lines, removing pallets and flammable materials with heavy machinery to prevent the flames from reaching other neighboring warehouses and workshops. Although the affected site was "completely compromised," according to the statement used by the fire department itself, The spread to other companies was stopped.avoiding a much more serious scenario.
Around the At 9 a.m., the firefighters declared the fire stabilized and under control.Although the work continued throughout the morning and part of the afternoon, personnel and vehicles remained at the site for hours carrying out tasks such as soaking, checking for hot spots, and controlled demolition of unstable elements of the collapsed roof.
In total, it is estimated that approximately eighty officers They have intervened at some point in the firefighting and support efforts, including units from the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan Police), Local Police, and Civil Protection teams. The scale of the deployment is due to the added risk involved in working in a chemical recycling industry, with the presence of potentially hazardous substances and pressurized containers.
C-59 road closure, impact on mobility and emergency management
The fire has also had a significant impact on traffic in the area. The Catalan Traffic Service reported that The C-59 road was closed in both directions at the height of Caldes de Montbui, approximately between the kilometer points 12 and 13Around eight in the morning. Some of the aerosols that exploded inside the warehouse ended up on the road itself, increasing the risk to vehicles.
The Mossos d'Esquadra deployed several units to regulate traffic, establish detours and cordon off access to the La Borda industrial park. Local police, for their part, closed surrounding streets to facilitate the entry and movement of emergency vehicles. The message from the police forces to the public was clear: do not approach the affected area and always follow the instructions of the emergency services.
After a little over two and a half hours of total disruption, and once the Fire Department determined that there was no longer an immediate risk to traffic, The C-59 reopened at about 10:30 in the morningAlthough there were still delays while traffic was being normalized and debris scattered along the road was being removed.
Civil Protection of the Generalitat activated the Procicat Plan pre-alert Specifically for emergencies that could impact the population or the environment. The emergency telephone number 112 received around 80 calls related to the event throughout the morning, many of them from neighbors concerned about the column of smoke or the noise of the explosions.
Given the chemical nature of the waste treated at the plant, the following tests were carried out air quality measurements in the area surrounding the industrial park to rule out any significant impact. According to initial data provided by those in charge of the operation, the levels detected did not necessitate ordering lockdowns or adopting additional measures for the population beyond the recommendation to stay away from the fire area.
Neighborhood concerns and a history at the same company
With the fire now under control, testimonies from workers and residents have emerged expressing their concern for safety at the damaged plantSome employees of neighboring warehouses claim that «It's not the first or second time"that a fire occurs in this same facility dedicated to the recycling of chemical products and aerosols."
One of the witnesses who directly helped to rescue one of the injured reported that «It was something we knew could happen"," alluding to the combination of flammable materials and the characteristics of the building. Several workers in the industrial park believe that an activity of this type, which handles potentially hazardous productsIt should be located "further away" from other businesses to minimize the risk of collateral damage in the event of an accident.
These statements are linked to a recurring debate in many industrial areas of Spain and Europe: how to reconcile the recycling of hazardous waste and the circular economy with workplace safety and the protection of the urban environment. The management of aerosols, paints, and other industrial byproducts requires strict controls and emergency plans, both within the facilities themselves and at the level of land-use planning.
Local and regional authorities will now have to analyze in detail the exact causes of the initial explosion, review the internal company security protocols and assess whether modifications to the regulations or the location of these types of activities are necessary. The technical investigation will have to determine whether the incident was due to a single failure, human error, or possible structural or maintenance deficiencies.
Meanwhile, the residents of Caldes de Montbui and the workers at the La Borda industrial park anxiously observe the charred remains of the warehouse, aware that The outcome could have been even more serious in the event of the fire spreading to other factories or causing widespread harm to the population. This incident once again highlights the importance of prevention, the rapid response of emergency services, and industrial planning that carefully considers the risks associated with waste management and chemical activities.
The incident at the recycling plant in Caldes de Montbui has so far left a scenario of Three workers hospitalized in serious condition, a facility virtually destroyed, traffic disruptions, and a major deployment of resourcesBut there are also many open questions about the safety of industrial by-product handling and how to minimize the risk of such incidents happening again in the future.
