IT has long been Romsey’s biggest eye-sore – but also its biggest fire risk.

Hundreds of thousands of old tyres have been dumped at the former Ashfield mill.

Now fire and police are joining local authorities next Tuesday (June 11) to practise how they would deal with a fire at the highly flammable site. The site lies within the division of Hampshire County Council leader, Roy Perry, who said: “I have always had concerns about this site and although we are informed that the chances of a major incident happening are remote, it’s important that all the agencies are properly prepared with a robust emergency response plan that will make sure risks are minimised. “That’s why it’s vital to ensure these plans already in place are fully tested.”

The exercise will include monitoring the impact of road closures and trialling equipment including Hampshire Fire and Rescue‘s high volume pumping unit.

The unit has a large hose, which can trasnport water from as far away as 1km (in this case the River Test) to the scene of the fire. It pumps around 7,500 litres (1,650 gallons) per minute.

The unit will be one of 11 HFRS vehicles due to be deployed in the exercise.

A fire service spokeman said: “Fires at sites such as Ashfield are notoriously difficult to extinguish due to the volume and type of material involved.

“They could therefore burn for some time, despite ongoing efforts. It could be that, dependent on circumstances, the surrounding area and the other tyres would be protected first to prevent spread before the fire itself was tackled.”

To make conditions as realistic as possible road closures will take place between 6pm and 10pm.

The A3057 Romsey Road will be closed between the junctions of the M271 and the A27. Additional road closures will also be in place on Coldharbour Lane, Hoe Lane, Toothill Road, Lee Drove, and Lee Lane for the same period.

There will be a signed main diversion route via the A27 Luzborough Lane and A27 Botley Road, Rownhams Lane, Bakers Drove, and A3057 Romsey Road and in the other direction.

However, residents with properties affected by the road closures will be allowed to and from their homes. Several enterprises have failed to run a viable tyre business at Ashfield.

The landowner is currently in negotiation with a business to remove the discarded tyres.

Dave Thompson, who runs Flinstone Tyres in Shirley, said: “I’ve been talking to a couple of potential operators at the moment. However there has been a collapse in the market for baled tyres.”

Previous site operator, Pure8, had been exporting tyres to South Korea for burning for fuel, said Mr Thompson, but there was no longer a demand, adding that he had been in discussion with a firm looking at selling the tyres for use as liners in landfill sites.

He added that Pure8, which had run the site in the early part of 2012, had helped reduce the tyre mountain to 300,000, according to estimates made by Hampshire County Council.