PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Philadelphia firefighters battled a smoky, three-alarm blaze that broke out at a recycling plant in the city’s Bridesburg section Wednesday afternoon.

The fire started at about 3:30 p.m. at the Kuusakoski Recycling Plant in the 3100 block of Orthodox Street between Richmond Street and the Delaware River.

Chopper 3 HD was over the scene where it showed piles of pallets and trash burning. A thick plume of smoke could be seen miles away.

The battle to control the fire was made even more difficult due to the lack of hydrants in the area. It took nearly 100 firefighters and 28 pieces of equipment to contain the fire.

The fire was placed under control shortly after 5 p.m.

Deputy Fire Chief Joe Mack says the only property damaged by the flames were the recycled appliances and electronic equipment outside the plant.

“The only consideration we had for exposure is we had one building and we were able to stop it before it got to the building. And then the other thing was there were vehicles back in here — tractor trailers, semi-trailers and we were able to stop it,” Mack explained.

There were no injuries and no houses in the area were impacted.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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