Tonnes of recycled waste has caught fire at a recycling centre in south-west London causing a train line to be partially closed.
Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters were called to tackle the blaze on Johnson Street, Southall, on Sunday afternoon, the London Fire Brigade said.
Did anyone else just see this in Southall?!
— UB1UB2 West London (Southall) (@UB1UB2) January 11, 2026
The sky was completely lit up and visible from miles away, after a massive fire had broken out at a warehouse near Scotts Road, UB2. pic.twitter.com/kLCcGd2FDg
Eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters are responding to a fire on Johnson Street, Southall.
— VisitSouthall (@VisitSouthall) January 11, 2026
The fire is located at a recycling centre and around 15 tonnes of mixed recycling is currently alight.#Southall #SouthallFire #JohnsonStreetFire #Firefighters #FireEmergency pic.twitter.com/UlfdSq3t1e
Unverified videos posted on social media show huge plumes of smoke and tall flames seen above houses.
About 15 tonnes of waste was alight.
Due to smoke from the fire, the Great Western Main Line has been partially closed as a precaution whilst crews respond.
National Rail said major disruption between London Paddington and Heathrow Terminals and Reading is expected until 11pm.
No trains in or out of #Paddington station tonight due to a fire near the tracks between Paddington and Reading @BBCNews pic.twitter.com/PvHFWOyXQ0
— Greg McKenzie (@GregMcX1) January 11, 2026
⚠️ NEW: #EalingBroadway - Disruption between London Paddington and Reading expected until 20:00https://t.co/ljxzr5OU7I
— National Rail (@nationalrailenq) January 11, 2026
Heathrow Express trains were suspended but resumed around 9pm. They faced delays of up to 15 minutes.
Firefighters were called to the scene at around 5.33pm. Crews from Southall, Hayes, Feltham and surrounding fire stations rushed to the incident.
Firefighters had the fire under control by 8.35pm.
The cause of the fire is not yet known.
It comes a few months after another huge blaze in Southall. On November 24, 150 firefighters tackled a warehouse fire in Bridge Road, which is roughly a 23 minute walk from the current fire in Johnson Street.
A major incident was declared by the LFB after the service suspected there were fireworks and cylinders within the burning structure. Explosions were reported at the scene.
