SSSI Limited resumed work on Landmann Way on 25 August, from a separate building and at reduced capacity. Mattresses will no longer be stored overnight; the fire's cause is still open.

The waste site on Landmann Way that burned for a second time this summer is working again. SSSI Limited restarted operations on Tuesday 25 August, one week after the fire of 18 August, according to an update published by Lewisham Council on 27 August.

The council says the company is running “at a reduced capacity” and only from a separate building on the site. The building where the fire started is not in use, even though it has been confirmed as structurally safe.

What has changed on the site

The council’s update lists the steps SSSI Limited has taken since the fires:

  • additional fire prevention equipment, which the council says is now in place
  • no mattresses stored on site overnight
  • all operations stopped in the building where the fire started
  • work with the Environment Agency on site improvements and a longer-term plan

The Environment Agency, which issues and regulates the site’s waste permit, is making regular inspections. The council says it will “seek assurance that appropriate measures are in place to help prevent future fires”.

Two air quality monitors are also being installed at nearby locations. The council has not said where, or when they will start reporting.

Two fires, and a cause the records do not agree on

The council’s update says the June fire “is believed to have been caused by a lithium-ion battery”. The London Fire Brigade’s own incident record says something different. Its Fire Investigation Team ruled the cause of the 8 June fire “undetermined”.

That is not necessarily a contradiction. A brigade ruling of undetermined means investigators could not establish the cause to their standard; the council’s wording is a belief, not a finding. But readers should know the two public records say different things.

The cause of the second fire, on 18 August, is still being investigated by the brigade. Its incident page has not been updated since 05:30 on 19 August.

The brigade’s records give the scale of each:

8 June 18 August
First call 17:32 19:59
Under control 23:57 02:16 next day
Engines and crew 15 engines, about 100 firefighters 15 engines, about 100 firefighters
What burned refuse, a warehouse roof, a van and a car about 50 tonnes of household waste
Calls to the brigade multiple more than 160

Sources: London Fire Brigade, 8 June and 18 August. Our report on the night of the second fire is here.

Timeline of the Landmann Way waste site in 2026: fire on 8 June, cause recorded as undetermined by the London Fire Brigade; second fire on 18 August, 50 tonnes of waste, cause under investigation; SSSI Limited restarted operations on 25 August at reduced capacity from a separate building; council update published 27 August
Eleven weeks between the two fires, and one week between the second fire and the restart.

Who runs the site, and what the council sends there

SSSI Limited is a private company. Companies House records it as company 08915332, incorporated on 27 February 2014, with its registered office at Deptford Recycling Centre, Landmann Way, SE14 5RS.

The council is a customer, not the operator. Its update says the council “works with a number of external waste management contractors” and that SSSI Limited “accepts some bulky and fly-tipped waste collected by the Council”. Rubbish and recycling from household bins does not go to the site. The council also says it has no role in the site’s daily operations, which run under the Environment Agency permit.

That distinction matters because the council’s own Landmann Way Reuse and Recycling Centre is on the same road and is a different facility. It stayed open through both fires, as we reported at the time.

Could it happen again?

The council does not promise it will not. Its update says “no waste site can guarantee that a fire will never happen”, and points instead to the new prevention measures and the Environment Agency’s oversight.

The wider risk it names is batteries. Lithium-ion cells in vapes, power banks and electrical items can ignite if crushed during collection or processing. The council asks residents not to put them in household bins, and to use battery recycling points, participating supermarkets or the reuse and recycling centre instead.

What it means for you

  • If you live nearby: the site is operating again, at reduced capacity, and the building that burned is out of use. The Environment Agency is inspecting regularly, and two air quality monitors are being installed.
  • If you were worried about a repeat: the council says the risk is reduced, not removed. Mattresses will no longer be stored overnight, and extra fire prevention equipment is in place.
  • If you were affected by smoke: the council says it is normal to feel unsettled after an event like this, and suggests speaking to your GP if the feeling lasts more than a few weeks.
  • Batteries and vapes: keep them out of your bins. Our bin collection days guide covers what goes where; the reuse and recycling centre takes batteries free.
  • Questions about the site: the permit holder is the Environment Agency, not the council. The council says it will raise residents’ concerns with the agency.

We will update this page if the London Fire Brigade publishes a cause for the August fire, or the council names the air quality monitor locations.

Sources