Fire Breaks Out at Industrial Laundry in Southall
Investigators believe clothes overheated in tumble dryer
Industrial tumble dryers can have a capacity of 120kg
January 21, 2025
London Fire Brigade believes that a fire that broke out in an industrial laundry in Southall this week may have been due to clothes overheating after being tumble dried.
Four fire engines and around 25 firefighters from Southall, Ealing and Acton fire stations were called to Johnson’s London Linen on Jackson Way at 4:16am on Monday (20 January).
Crews extinguished a small fire on the first floor in just over an hour. There were no reports of any injuries.
The fire is believed to have been accidental and was caused by the self-heating of textiles in large capacity tumble dryers.
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said, "These types of fires often involve textiles that become contaminated with oil, most commonly linseed, massage and cooking oil on tea towels, tablecloths and chef whites. Make sure you check the manufacturer's cleaning recommendations of your textiles before washing.
"Sometimes when materials are cleaned and put in tumble dryers, the heat from the tumble drying cannot escape. This can result in a high enough temperature allowing it to build up to a point where it smoulders and eventually ignites.
"If you are washing and then drying on a hot cycle, always use the cooling cycle on the tumble dryer so it cools down and allow the heat to dissipate properly, before stacking laundered items together.”
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