The massive fire at a recycling warehouse that sent dark plumes of smoke over Brisbane's rush-hour traffic yesterday is expected to keep burning for days.
More than 20,000 cubic metres of compressed cardboard was burned and the building's roof collapsed.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) Acting Superintendent Tim Clark said crews had fought the fire at Hemmant in Brisbane's east for about four hours but had been unable to access parts of the collapsed building.
"We are doing our best to extinguish it as quickly as possible but it's really hard to determine what the timeframe will be," he said.
Brendan Neinert from the business next door, Thermofreeze, was not expecting to get much sleep overnight, knowing the fire was still burning.
He said he had not been concerned when he first heard about the blaze from his wife, because fire was a regular occurrence in the area.
"Generally, one of these buildings around here is on fire every year, so we don't think too much of it," he said.
But this fire was out of the ordinary.
Four people escaped unharmed from the building in Gosport Street when the fire broke out at 2:30pm yesterday and nearby businesses were evacuated.
"It went from a single pallet fire to a full building," Mr Neinert said.
The blaze started in piles of compacted paper, cardboard and plastic outside the warehouse before spreading to other parts of the building.
Sixteen fire units were able to protect other commercial properties in the area.
Rain helpful but not enough
QFES incident controller inspector Corey Dennis said five crews were still working to supress the fire this morning.
"We've got a couple of fires that are flaring up from time to time," he said.
Mr Dennis said the rain had "definitely helped" but it would not put it out completely.
"Until we get some heavier machinery in to lift the roof, we are not going to be able to extinguish the fire," he said.
Mr Dennis said the scientific unit was also on scene checking the hazard levels in the smoke.
"They're conducting atmospheric monitoring. At this point in time all the levels are well within the limits," he said.
Acting Superintendent Clark said it could have been a lot worse.
"It had a massive potential to extend into neighbouring properties … I've got to really commend the crew," he said.
"They've been working under extreme conditions to protect those unaffected buildings.
"So far they've done a fantastic job and I'm sure that will continue."
The cause of the fire remains unknown.
Initial investigations are expected to begin tomorrow.
