Spontaneous combustion is believed to have triggered a large fire at an Auckland Laundromat this morning - just the latest in a string of laundry buildings to catch fire from the unusual cause in recent months.
Six fire engines were needed to fight the blaze at the Laundromat on O'Donnell Ave, Mt Roskill about 1am.
Auckland City Fire Service Assistant Area Commander Geoff Purcell said early indications suggested spontaneous combustion was behind the fire, that took 30-minutes to extinguish.
An adjacent block of flats had to be evacuated but no one was injured and damage, though extensive, was contained to the Laundromat.
"It is quite an unknown hazard to people that when you wash a whole load of towels or whatever and dry them in a dryer, if you don't let them cool before you put them away they can actually spontaneously combust."
Mr Purcell said it was about the seventh fire at an Auckland Laundromat recently where spontaneous combustion was to blame
The Fire Service was about to begin educational work with the sector to prevent further fires.
"This is a problem at the moment, it has been the confirmed cause of about six other laundry fires we have had in recent months."
In July, the Woodworks Café in Avondale fell victim to the cause after a load of freshly dry cleaned towels erupted into flames and the same occurred at the Sandringham Laundromat on August 5.
Spontaneous Combustion
• Warm laundry, when folded and stored tightly, is hot and moist and begins to oxidise
• Oxidation happens when oxygen contacts something and begins to break it down - e.g. rust
• In some laundry fabrics, oxidation produces heat
• If the oxidation is allowed to build, it gets hot enough to self-ignite
• The process can be fuelled up by traces of chemicals, oils and fats left in towels, rags or clothing
• Plastic containers, that are often used for storage, are also highly flammable and can fuel fires
(SOURCE: National Fire Code of USA)
