What’s that smell?
That’s the question many Portland residents asked on social media Tuesday night, as their streets, yards and sometimes homes filled with an irritating smell that some described as burning plastic, tires or fireworks.
“Smells toxic,” one Reddit user said.
“Just closed my windows because it was burning my eyes and smells awful,” another wrote.
And the reports weren’t limited to a single area — residents in North and Northeast Portland who posted about the smell found that people as far south as Sellwood and West Linn were having similar experiences.
While officials haven’t confirmed the exact cause, the Vancouver Fire Department announced a possible explanation: a fire that broke out around 8 p.m. at a metal shredding facility at the Port of Vancouver. And a meteorologist with the National Weather Service said it was “highly probable” that that was the source.
Vancouver fire spokesperson Joe Hudson told The Oregonian/OregonLive in an email that firefighters found a metal pile in flames when they arrived at the scene.
He added that fire crews battled the blaze through the night, and were still pumping water onto the fire as of Wednesday morning.
Officials haven’t announced a suspected cause for the fire.
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