Firefighters and water-bombing helicopters are in the midst of tackling an ominous cloud of toxic black smoke pluming from a fire at a tyre recycling plant in Melbourne, Victoria.
The blaze, currently contained to an industrial area in Broadmeadows, has been billowing smoke across the city since 9 a.m. Monday morning.
The Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) has since issued warnings to residents of the suburb and surrounding areas to stay indoors and protect themselves from the fumes.
Deputy chief fire officer David Youssef said at a press conference approximately 120,000 tyres are burning, and these sort of fires are "very difficult" to extinguish due to the difficulty in identifying the source. "There is a lot of rubber there and a lot of fuel to burn," he said.
The MFB said on Twitter 10,000 litres of water a minute is being poured on the fire, in an attempt to extinguish it.
Nearby citizens have taken the opportunity to photograph the flames, capturing its enormity.
A photo posted by Nicole Garmston (@nicolegarmston) on Jan 10, 2016 at 3:28pm PST
Broadmeadows factory fire.@heraldsunphoto #broadmeadows fire pic.twitter.com/u6gweVrhtB— Ian Currie (@iancurrie66) January 11, 2016
A video posted by @newsheli on Jan 10, 2016 at 4:10pm PST
#factory #fire in #broadmeadows. rear of Tyre Crumb Aus @theage @9NewsMelb @heraldsun @7NewsMelbourne @abcnewsMelb pic.twitter.com/ETkFTBFbpJ— Higher Perspective (@higherpersppic) January 10, 2016
#Broadmeadows tyre blaze tackled from above - Air tankers on scene assisting fireys on the ground. pic.twitter.com/rr0DeKZ5H0— MFB (@MFB_NEWS) January 11, 2016
The thick plumage of smoke can be seen from more than 75 kilometres (46.6 miles) away, according to photographs, with only one-third of the tyres currently on fire. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
A photo posted by Miro Belbin 미로 (@mirobelbin) on Jan 10, 2016 at 2:40pm PST
A photo posted by Frederic Photography (@deanfrederic) on Jan 10, 2016 at 3:46pm PST
Tyre fire as seen from Brunswick street #melbourne #tyrefire #broadmeadows pic.twitter.com/HTicBq0k7P— Oceans forever (@Grim_Oceans) January 10, 2016