UPDATE: 2.05pm

Locals described seeing plumes of white smoke billowing over the mountain after the blaze at Chapel Farm Industrial Estate began just before 7am.

Marcus Davies, who works nearby with Shadow Scaffolding, said: “I was driving past and saw thick white smoke coming from the scrapyard into the sky. I thought people would have already called the fire brigade so I wasn’t really frightened.”

Chapel Farm Industrial Estate is on the east bank of the River Ebbw, near to Cwmcarn Primary School and the larch trees of Cwmcarn Forest Drive.

The fire broke out in a yard there, where fire engines parked up next to mounds of scrap metal around three times as high as a person’s height.

Rails, cars doors and kitchen appliances could be seen among the scrap, alongside heavy machinery driving in and out of the site.

Kristian Farmer, 42, from Newport, often walks along the river close to the industrial estate with his two dogs and says he has had fears over the scrap metal waste for more than a month.

“I reported it to Natural Resources Wales about a month ago because there was oil and fuel pouring out of the cars there,” he said. “It’s close to the river as well and things could easily catch fire there and take out half the village.”

A worker at a neighbouring scrapyard, who did not want to be named, said: “There was a hell of a lot of smoke, going straight up over the mountain. We could see the ‘grabber’ machinery moving the metal trying to put it out. It’s third fire I have seen there.”

Another man said: “There was a lot of smoke, but nobody seemed to be panicking.”

Firefighters drove two fire engines and two tankers of water to the scene at Chapel Farm Industrial Estate, where they were still dealing with the aftermath at 11am.

The fire serviceSouth Wales Fire and Rescue Service said they do not know if the fire was deliberate.

A spokesman at the recycling site said the fire was under control and had been dealt with “within five minutes”.

UPDATE: 8.59am

FIREFIGHTERS are still tackling a fire at a recycling site in Cwmcarn this morning.

Around 10 tonnes of scrap metal are alight. Two fire engines and two water bowsers have been at Chapel Farm Industrial Estate since 6.53am.

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service said they do not know if the fire was deliberate.