Last week, around a hundred homes and businesses in and around the area were evacuated because of toxic fumes, smoke and ash emanating from the fire, which is still burning.
It is more than a week since a major fire broke out at the Coolaroo recycling centre in Melbourne's northern suburbs.
And as it continues to burn, nearby residents say they are becoming increasingly worried about the toll it could be taking on their health.
Frances Evans, who lives in the nearby suburb of Dallas, says her family was among more than a hundred people evacuated last week as result of the fire.
"I mean, the whole thing's quite horrifying, and the fact that it's still burning is really ... it's horrifying. We want to know who's to account and who's going to compensate the community."
Ms Evans, who suffers from asthma, says she had chest problems when the fire broke out and, while she is feeling better, she is concerned about her 4-year-old son.
"My asthma disappeared after I Ieft, after I left Dallas, but my son got sick over the weekend with ulcers on his lips. And then, after we returned, he got a respiratory infection and a virus."
Following a community meeting, a class action has now been lodged with the Supreme Court against the owner and operator of the plant, SKM Recycling.
Class-action principal Brendan Pendergast of Maddens Lawyers points out last week's fire was the third at the recycling plant this year.
"A once-off fire, in some instances, is probably less foreseeable, less predictable, less able to be managed, but, when you have instances of repeated fires in a circumstance where fire is a predictable hazard, I believe that seriously and significantly strengthens the case."
In a statement provided to SBS, SKM says:
"We understand the impacts the fire had on our neighbours and the local community, and we are extremely sorry for what they have gone through. We have never had an incident like this in our 18 years of operations. At this stage, the cause of this fire has not been established, and we look forward to the investigations shedding more light on exactly what has occurred and why."
Ms Evans was one of about a hundred residents who attended the community meeting.
She says many expressed concern about the long-term health impacts of the blaze.
"Residents were pretty upset, that they feel like they've been exposed to very harmful toxins. One of the elderly residents I talked to said he stayed just because he didn't have anywhere to go and didn't want to go to the Broadmeadows Aquatic Centre. He said he was worried that his car exhaust might have absorbed some of the harmful ash and that his bathroom, which he didn't seal, also absorbed a lot of ash."
During the evacuations, many were sent to the Broadmeadows Aquatic Centre, while others chose to seek refuge elsewhere, in motels or with friends and family.
Mr Pendergast says a number of those evacuated were either "not strong in English or don't speak any English."
He says he has been told their needs were not catered for during the evacuations.
"There were many people who can speak no English who were sort of left out of the loop, if I can put it that way, were not, you know, presented with the urgent information in their language at the time. And they were, to some extent, left on the periphery to fend for themselves."
The next Coolaroo community meeting will be held on Sunday July 23.
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