A bin lorry caught fire in Wirral last week, causing delays to collections.

Wirral Council, which contracts out its waste collection service to Biffa, said the fire was caused by hot ashes being put into a bin.

The local authority circulated a warning to residents on social media over the weekend.

The council's message read: "This week, a Biffa bin lorry caught fire because ashes were placed in the bin whilst they were still hot.

"In addition to delays on collections, this takes up valuable time from fire crews.

"Please dispose of fire ashes safely – wait at least 24 hours before emptying your fire and place ash into the green (general waste) bin."

Many people commented on Wirral Council's Facebook post about the fire, one person said: "This is dangerous, the rubbish in there could explode if the driver isn't aware of it."

Others were also worried about the safety of the crew - one person said "hope no one was hurt", while another called the placing of the hot ashes in the bin "stupid".

However, one social media user could not help making light of the situation.

They said: "What a load of rubbish, sorry, so glad everyone was safe and the fire was contained."