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Dozens of firefighters in India's capital have been struggling for days to extinguish a fire at the Ghazipur landfill. The effects are very detrimental to residents. Unfortunately, the exact cause of the fire is still unclear according to the official.

It seems impossible for an ordinary vehicle to reach the place where the fire is blazing. So it took a digger to clear a way for them to go in and extinguish the fire. Most of Delhi’s firefighters were deployed to tackle the fires.

This landfill is one of the largest waste dumps in Asia. Its height can be up to 65m. Experts have long called for the mountain of rubbish to be flattened. But thousands of tonnes of waste are still dumped, even though the capacity has exceeded the limit since 2002. Fires often break out, mostly because of the methane generated as the waste decomposes and when it gets burned, it will cause unpleasant odors, respiratory problems, and eye irritations. There are hundreds of landfills like these across India, where many cities don’t have a proper waste disposal system.

Akshay. Local Resident
“We may have to wear masks even inside our houses. I have been living here for many years. My house is opposite the dump. We are facing a lot of problems because of the smoke. We are not able to breathe properly and the smoke has entered our houses. It was especially terrible at the night. Somehow, we got through it.”

Imran. Local Resident
“My eyes have been burning since yesterday because of these toxic fumes. There are small children in my house, and my parents are quite old. It’s very difficult for us. The smell is terrible and lasts around the year.”