Indian capital engulfed in smoke after landfill catches fire

By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL
AP Science Writer

NEW DELHI (AP) — Acrid smoke is hanging over New Delhi for a second day after a massive landfill caught fire during a scorching heat wave. The Indian capital, like many other parts of South Asia, is in the midst of a record-shattering heatwave. The landfill that caught fire in northern Delhi’s Bhalswa is taller than a 17-story building and covers an area bigger than 50 football fields. Every day more than 2,300 tons of garbage is dumped there without being segregated, resulting in the build-up of combustible methane gas. Experts say this gas, along with the high temperatures, may have caused the fire, which was still smoldering early Wednesday morning.