A massive plume of smoke filled the skies along the Columbia River in Longview on Saturday afternoon after a major industrial fire broke out at a metal recycling facility.

The Longview Fire Department says they were dispatched around 12:30 p.m. to PNW Metal Recycling off Industrial Way near the Indy Way Diner for a reported blaze that started in a 20-foot pile of scrap metal. When they arrived, they confirmed that the pile was fully engulfed, and fire suppression efforts began.

Soon after, the air quality around Longview was affected, and a shelter-in-place advisory was issued by the Cowlitz County Department of Emergency Management.

Fire crews remained on scene all day and into Sunday morning. They said just before 3 p.m. Saturday that they expected suppression efforts to take another five to six hours, though they did not say exactly when the flames were knocked down.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, and the extent of the damage is not known.