Durban - A factory that manufactures cooking oil went up in flames on Thursday morning.
A huge plume of smoke could be seen from as far away as Queensburgh, some 15 kilometres away.
It was not immediately clear if there were any injuries, but Netcare 911 spokesman Chris Botha said he was not aware of any calls for medical assistance being received.
Robert Mackenzie, spokesman for the provincial Emergency Medical Service, said they had one report of a person who had injured his arm. However, he said it was not clear whether this injury was linked to the fire or if it was a worker who was injured on duty.
East Coast Radio's traffic report stated that a portion of the busy South Coast Road had been closed off to traffic as firefighters fought the blaze.
The phone for Africa SunOil Refineries (Pty) Ltd went unanswered.
Twitter was full of pictures posted by a Durban commuter showing the massive plume of smoke in the sky.
It was also not immediately clear if the neighbouring Plascon paint factory was under any immediate threat.
Sapa