Attempts to put out a huge blaze in Htein Bin rubbish dump have left experts asking why basic safeguards and control measures were not employed

A pale haze still lingers over Yangon’s Hlaingthaya Township, where the sprawling Htein Bin landfill burned for 14 days. For many residents of the township – one of Myanmar’s poorest and most populous – life continues as usual: mothers feed their babies in small huts on the fringes of the dump; packs of dogs roam the plastic wasteland, searching for something edible among the soft-drink bottles.

Hlaingthaya residents say the dump catches fire most years, but the blazes have never been this big or lasted so long. More than two dozen people were hospitalised for smoke inhalation and injuries linked to the fire between 20 April, when it broke out, and 3 May, when authorities finally declared the situation under control.

What they’re doing with the water is only creating a bigger problem for the future Julius de Jong

Landfill fires are not uncommon in the developing world. When India’s largest rubbish dump, at Deonar in Mumbai, caught fire in January 2016 it burned for two months and could be seen from space. It burned again this year. The Cerro Patacón landfill in Panama burned for several days in 2008 and again in 2013. In the Bahamas, the New Providence site has caught fire three times in the past 12 months.

In the case of the Htein Bin fire, most coverage quotes authorities as saying the cause is being investigated and there is no sign of foul play. Almost no reports mention the causes or solutions common in academic articles on waste management. Many Yangon residents – like those of Mumbai and Panama City – are left wondering why city authorities continue to ignore textbook solutions to a slow-burning disaster.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A firefighter receives oxygen from paramedics. Photograph: Jacob Goldberg

City authorities sprang into action the day after the fire started, dispatching hundreds of firefighters, soldiers, and police with trucks and hoses to rain water over the burning trash, hoping some of it would reach the fire’s subterranean source before evaporating.



“For now there is nothing else we can do,” says Kyaw Min, a retired firefighter and a member of Myanmar’s national parliament.

The literature on landfill fires, though, reveals they are often caused by heat and gas emitted by decomposing organic waste. According to Julius de Jong, managing director of waste management company Orgaworld Asia, there are simple and well-known measures that can prevent and control landfill fires like the one at Htein Bin.

The Cityscape: get the best of Guardian Cities delivered to you every week, with just-released data, features and on-the-ground reports from all over the world

“What they’re doing with the water is only creating a bigger problem for the future,” he says. “You want to take the oxygen away from the fire. That’s the real solution.”



The most effective measure, he adds, is to separate organics so they are treated elsewhere and do not go to the landfill at all. For Yangon, where an estimated 2,000 tonnes of organic waste is produced every day, this potential fire-starter could instead be harnessed to produce fertiliser and energy.

The firefighters don’t have oxygen tanks or anything. They’re just out there with basic masks, which are not enough Anthony Quick

Even for landfills that do include organic waste, there are lines of defence. Fire-safe landfills around the world are built upon a layer of concrete or metal, preventing organic waste from entering the ecosystem. Some also include a mineral layer on top of the waste to keep out moisture. Keeping organic waste dry and contained slows decomposition and mitigates the release of heat and gases. The Htein Bin landfill has neither of these safeguards.

In the event a landfill does catch fire, the most effective solution is to smother it with sand or soil. In Yangon – where the fire was thought to be burning 50 feet below the surface in places – authorities dismissed this approach because it “would not reach the fire”. De Jong says this betrays a lack of knowledge.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Firefighters haul a water hose up a hill of rubbish. Photograph: Jacob Goldberg

Instead, city authorities bought biofoam from Thailand. Like water, foam may put out surface fires. Unlike sand, foam will not cut off the fire’s oxygen, he says.

Anthony Quick, an adviser for Myanmar Free Ambulance, which has been providing first aid at the scene, says firefighters were further hampered by a dangerous lack of equipment. He described an emergency call from a fire chief who was on the brink of suffocation a third of a mile into the landfill’s smoky interior. Several ambulances responded, but turned back when they could not find him. Quick persisted, eventually spotting the man and administering a life-saving dose of oxygen.

“There’s very thick smoke and lots of hazardous substances in the air,” he said. “They don’t have oxygen tanks or anything. They’re just out there with basic masks, which are not enough.”

New York comes clean: the controversial story of the Fresh Kills dumpsite Read more

Aware of the resource shortages hindering the firefighting effort, people from all over Yangon stepped up to contribute.

Hla Thein, a lawmaker in Yangon’s regional parliament, commended the donations of snacks and drinks that piled up on the landfill’s edge. “This is just something Myanmar people do,” he said. “As soon as they hear about a natural disaster, they spring into action.”

Quick, though, bemoaned the lack of equipment. “Snacks are great, but [the firefighters] have plenty of snacks now,” he said. “What they need is breathing apparatus.”

Follow Guardian Cities on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to join the discussion, and explore our archive here

