A PLUME of smoke was sent 10ft into the air as 200 tonnes of rubbish went up in flames.

Firefighters from Dartford fire station spent four hours tackling the inferno at Lee's Yard, Rochester Way, Dartford.

The fire started at 4.17am on Monday when the giant mound of paper "internally combusted".

Yard owner Thomas Lee says although it has not happened before, it is not an unusual occurrence at recycling premises.

He said: "The waste had been heating up in the recent hot weather and then with the rain it just caught alight.

"The waste ferments and pressures inside sometimes cause this type of thing to happen.

"It is not unusual. We called the fire crews and they came to put out the fire and went.

"It's all just down to environmental pressures."

Mr Lee says the fire has left him out of pocket.

He said: "We pay by the tonne to get rid of the waste and now it has been wet down it will cost twice as much."

Mr Lee estimates it will cost him more than £5,000 to put the rubbish into a landfill site.

He says more than 200 train sleepers he puts underneath the waste, at a cost of £15 each, have been damaged.

But he insists there is no danger to the surrounding area.

Mr Lee said: "The waste was paper and nothing which would harm the environment.

"There are no schools or houses near the yard."

A Kent Fire and Rescue Service spokesman said: "It took the fire crew quite a long time to put the fire out.

"The waste has been completely ruined but we are not treating it as suspicious."