A HUGE fire broke out at York's main rubbish depot last night, affecting today's refuse collections from hundreds of homes and businesses.

More than 25 firefighters battled to bring the blaze under control at a warezhouse storing the city's main fleet of bin wagons at the Foss Islands Road site.

The road was closed for more than three hours as water supplies were taken from the River Foss.

Six refuse trucks were engulfed in flames as thick black smoke billowed into the air. Fire crews were initially kept back for safety reasons as the intense heat exploded tyres from the wagons into the air, blowing a hole in the warehouse roof.

Geoff Derham, City of York Council's senior waste manager, said five replacement trucks were being hired to keep disruption to a minimum. He said the usual Monday commercial and domestic collections in York's city centre and suburban areas would go ahead as normal, but may be delayed by up to an hour.

Updated: 10:20 Monday, February 13, 2006