Street evacuated after huge blaze erupts at former Hunter Group site - live updates

Today's update on the fire

Good morning - if you’re still following this story we are bringing more live updates over on today’s blog.

You can see all the latest on the Lockwood fire here.

Tip fire coud burn for 5 days -full report

That’s all from us this evening - firefighters are still at the scene and the fire could burn for FIVE DAYS.

Here’s our full report from tonight’s major incident

Fire crews at work

Our reporter is inside the site with fire crews:

40 firefighters at scene

Tip fire could burn for '5 days'

Fire crews at work

Lots of emergency crews at the scene

'This won't be over anytime soon'

WATCH: Policeman wears face mask to protect against fumes in Lockwood

Smoke's still rising

WATCH: Our report from the scene in Lockwood

'You could see orange flames over the tree tops'

Sounds terrifying

Us too!

Star Inn evacuated

Dramatic picture of the tip on fire

Thanks to Baldwin Jackson for sharing this with us on Facebook:

Warning: Avoid the smoke

Best for nearby residents to close windows and doors, just in case

This is what the site looked like before the fire

Here’s some video footage we took last week:

'Smoke is getting denser'

Unsurprisingly, the incident is snarling up the roads around Albert Street

Here’s the latest from Google Traffic:

Businesses may be evacuated

Our reporter has heard talk that businesses will be evacuated - there are some oil drums at the site which are cause for concern

Major incident declared

Five fire engines at the scene

Five fire engines are at the scene pouring water onto the flames. The crews are from Huddersfield, Slaithwaite, Rastrick and Meltham.

A West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: “We are pouring water into the fire now from a safe distance and expect to be in attendance for several hours.”

Fire started just after 5.30pm

Shortly after 5.30pm today huge plumes of black smoke could be seen rising from the tip and within minutes it could be seen from as far away as Golcar and Ainley Top.

Claire Robertson-Dwyer, of Wood Terrace in Primrose Hill, said: “The whole place is on fire and we can hear things exploding. You just don’t know what’s in that place – some of the waste has been there for years. There may be an awful lot of chemical rubbish in there – we have seen blue bags of chemical waste being taken onto the site.

“The fire is raging and it’s a very dangerous situation. It’s so hot no-one can go anywhere near it.”

She also voiced fears about what could be in the smoke and that the run-off from water used to tackle the blaze could badly pollute the nearby river.

WATCH: Firefighters tackle Lockwood blaze

Our reporter is en route

Thanks for your pictures

We’ve been sent pictures of the fire from Examiner readers - thanks to everyone who has shared their images with us.

The fire looks serious:

Smoke spotted from the town centre

The smoke's rising thick and fast

Speedy response