Garbage dumped on northeast Austin street after trash truck fire: AFD

Trash truck catches fire in northeast Austin

A fire on Thursday afternoon inside a garbage truck resulted in a load being dumped into the street. It brings a holiday warning about improperly discarded items.

AUSTIN, Texas - A truckload of garbage was dumped on a street in northeast Austin after a trash truck caught fire, according to the Austin Fire Department.

AFD's hazmat task force responded to reports of a trash truck on fire at Ed Bluestein Boulevard and Purple Sage Drive near the 183 toll road.

Investigators believe the fire inside the truck this afternoon was caused by a battery to a power drill that was improperly tossed into the trash that was picked up.

For Austin firefighters to put out the fire, the load inside the truck had to be dumped onto Purple Sage Drive.

The incident serves as a reminder not to toss batteries, especially lithium batteries, into regular household recycling bins, or into your trash can.

"Anything that's going to store a charge like that, if it comes into contact with something that cause it to short out or over time just heat up gradually, it'll do so until it reaches an ignition temperature and starts setting fire to the things around it," Lt. Mike Nelson with AFD said. "It's essentially just a big trash fire right here. It'll get really deep-seeded, so you have to kind of rake through it, make sure you're soaking everything down and making sure it's completely cold."

With Christmas a few days away, there will be a lot of battery-pwered toys and electronic devices around. Remember: don't leave items on charge for too long, especially scooters, as they can overheat and start a fire.

Several Austin area libraries have battery recycling bins, as well as stores like Home Depot and Lowe's.