FIRE chiefs believe a blaze at a Belfast recycling plant is believed to have been started deliberately.

The fire, at Duncrue Pass on an industrial estate in the north of the city, had been brought under control by Monday morning.

Eight fire service pumping appliances, one aerial appliance and one support vehicle attended the incident and worked through the night from around 10pm on Sunday to tackle it.

Six appliances and support vehicles remained at the scene on Monday morning.

Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service group commander William Johnson said he believes the blaze was started deliberately.

He told the BBC that “good progress” had been made in tackling the flames, aided by very little wind in terms of weather conditions.

However he said there is “still a lot of work to be done due to the integrity of the building and contents of the building”.

He described the part of the site where the fire was as a waste recycling storage area.

“We haven’t made entry into the premises itself so we can’t determine that (cause of the fire) ultimately but currently we believe that it was a deliberate fire,” he said.

People are being urged to avoid the area where possible and those living and working nearby are advised to keep their windows closed.