Firefighters from several departments were called to battle a stubborn blaze amid scrap metal and equipment at the Auburn Metal Processing plant Saturday night.

Thick black smoke poured over the north end of Auburn beginning at about 9:30 p.m. and the first firefighters on the scene called for several area fire departments to send tanker trucks to the business, located on North Street Road just outside the city limits.

Dozens of onlookers stopped to watch as firefighters got the blaze under control within about 45 minutes.

Aerial trucks and hoses continued pouring water on smoldering piles of metal outside the plant's main building after 11 p.m.