Five Lanes recycling centre closed after suspected vape fire

The incident at Five Lanes Household Waste and Recycling Centre is believed to have been caused by the improper disposal of a vape.

Members of the public are being urged to dispose of vapes responsibly by returning them to a vape retailer that accepts used devices, or by placing them in an electrical waste container at household waste and recycling centres. 

The fire has caused significant damage at Five Lanes Household Waste and Recycling Centre (Image: Monmouthshire County Council)

A spokesperson for Monmouthshire County Council said: "Five Lanes Household Waste and Recycling Centre will remain closed [today, August, 18] following [yesterday's] fire.

"If you have a booking that has been impacted by the closure, Mitchel Troy is open Wednesday and Llanfoist Thursday. Five Lanes will reopen on Friday.

"The fire is believed to have been caused by the incorrect disposal of a vape.

"To help prevent future incidents, please dispose of vapes responsibly by: returning them to a vape retailer that accepts used devices, or taking them to your nearest Household Waste and Recycling Centre and placing them in the electrical waste container.

"Thank you for your patience and cooperation while we work to reopen the site safely".

Five Lanes Household Waste and Recycling Centre is expected to reopen on Friday, August 21. 

The site will be closed until Friday, while work is carried out to reopen the site safely (Image: Monmouthshire County Council)

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service crews received reports of the fire at 5.37am on Monday, August 17.

Crews and appliances from South Wales and neighbouring fire and rescue services attended, and brought the fire under control.

A spokesperson for South Wales Fire and Rescue Service said: "SWFRS received a call at around 05:37 17th August to reports of a fire at Five Lanes Quarry Waste Disposal Site, Caerwent. 

"The incident remains ongoing with crews and appliances from across South Wales and neighbouring fire and rescue services are in attendance". 

This is the second time Monmouthshire County Council have had to ask members of the public to dispose of their vapes safely this month, August 2026.

A disposal vape caused a fire in one of the council's refuse collection vehicles, which forced crews to empty the content of the vehicle so that it could be safely extinguished - resulting in a "substantial clean up".

As a result of the fire, crews were forced to empty the bin lorry onto the street in order to make sure it was properly extinguished (Image: MCC)

A spokesperson for Monmouth County Council said: "Vapes can ignite when crushed during collection, putting our crews, residents and vehicles at risk.

"The image was taken last Friday where a vape caused a fire in one of our refuse collection vehicles, officers had to empty the content so it could be extinguished before a substantial clean up.

"Don't put vapes or batteries in your bins, use dedicated recycling points instead, and help us keep our teams safe and prevent unnecessary fires".

Vapes should never be thrown into general household waste or litter bins because they contain lithium-ion batteries, which can pose a significant fire risk if damaged, crushed or punctured.